The Hangar Z Podcast

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Valor Plus . On today's episode, we're taking you to California's Central Valley as we visit the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office Air Support Unit. Joining us are Deputy AJ Nikkel and Deputy Tyler Liburdi, who both serve as pilots and tactical flight officers.  We'll explore...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Valor Plus .  Today's episode is a special collaboration with our friends from the Valor Flight Crew Podcast, and we're tackling a topic that impacts every one of us in aviation — fatigue.  Joining us for this outstanding panel discussion are the hosts of the Valor Flight Crew Podcast, Mike...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Valor Plus .  Today's episode is a special collaboration with our friends from the Valor Flight Crew Podcast, and we're tackling a topic that impacts every one of us in aviation — fatigue.  Joining us for this outstanding panel discussion are the hosts of the Valor Flight Crew Podcast, Mike...

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS in partnership with Valor Plus . On today’s episode, we’re pleased to welcome the two candidates for the Airborne Public Safety Association’s Northeast Regional Director position. Joining us are Eric Bourn of the South Berwick Police Department and Lt. Jason Baxley of the Delaware State Police. This special episode provides an o...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . In this comprehensive two-part conversation, Jon Gray and Jack Schonely are joined by Tamrin Olden, founder of TOC Public Relations, to discuss why social media has become a mission-critical tool for modern public safety.  Moving beyond the "ancillary duty" mindset, Tamr...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . In this comprehensive two-part conversation, Jon Gray and Jack Schonely are joined by Tamrin Olden, founder of TOC Public Relations, to discuss why social media has become a mission-critical tool for modern public safety.  Moving beyond the "ancillary duty" mindset, Tamr...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus .   Our guest is retired Lieutenant Glenn Daley of the New York City Police Department Aviation Unit. Glenn’s career in airborne law enforcement spans decades of service, leadership, instruction, and experience, that has taken him around the world. This conversation is powerful, emo...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus .   Our guest is retired Lieutenant Glenn Daley of the New York City Police Department Aviation Unit. Glenn’s career in airborne law enforcement spans decades of service, leadership, instruction, and experience, that has taken him around the world. This conversation is powerful, emo...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus .   Our guest is retired Lieutenant Glenn Daley of the New York City Police Department Aviation Unit. Glenn’s career in airborne law enforcement spans decades of service, leadership, instruction, and experience, that has taken him around the world. This conversation is powerful, emo...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus .  This episode was recorded live from the floor of VAI Verticon 2026 in Atlanta at the Vertical Plus booth.  In this episode we catch up with two returning guests and highly respected rescue and aviation professionals, retired Las Vegas Metro officer and owner of SR3 Rescue Concepts, Da...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . This three-part series comes to you from the hangar at Broward Sheriff's Office as part of the 2026 Blades of Valor Tour, where we had the opportunity to interview Sgt Paul Seda and pilot Carl Spear. The Blades of Valor Tour spotlights public safety aviation units recognized for o...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . This three-part series comes to you from the hangar at Broward Sheriff's Office as part of the 2026 Blades of Valor Tour, where we had the opportunity to interview Sgt Paul Seda and pilot Carl Spear. The Blades of Valor Tour spotlights public safety aviation units recognized for o...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . This three-part series comes to you from the hangar at Broward Sheriff's Office as part of the 2026 Blades of Valor Tour, where we had the opportunity to interview Sgt Paul Seda and pilot Carl Spear. The Blades of Valor Tour spotlights public safety aviation units recognized for o...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . In this two-part series of The Hangar Z Podcast, host Jon Gray is joined by OG co-host Jeff Ratkovich and industry veteran Terry Miyauchi. The conversation takes us on a deep dive into the evolving landscape of public safety aviation. Fresh off his transition from Bell to launching his...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . In this two-part series of The Hangar Z Podcast, host Jon Gray is joined by OG co-host Jeff Ratkovich and industry veteran Terry Miyauchi. The conversation takes us on a deep dive into the evolving landscape of public safety aviation. Fresh off his transition from Bell to launching his...

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . This episode is being released during Police Week 2026, a time set aside to honor the brave men and women in law enforcement who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to others. It’s a week of reflection, remembrance, and gratitude for our fallen brothers and sisters. Today’s guest is...

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . This episode is being released during Police Week 2026, a time set aside to honor the brave men and women in law enforcement who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to others. It’s a week of reflection, remembrance, and gratitude for our fallen brothers and sisters. Today’s guest is...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . Today, we are truly honored to be joined by Michael J. Durant—retired Chief Warrant Officer 4, Night Stalker, and MH-60 Black Hawk pilot—whose story is one of extraordinary courage, resilience, and unwavering determination. In this episode, Mike takes us all the way back to his ve...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . Today, we are truly honored to be joined by Michael J. Durant—retired Chief Warrant Officer 4, Night Stalker, and MH-60 Black Hawk pilot—whose story is one of extraordinary courage, resilience, and unwavering determination. In this episode, Mike takes us all the way back to his ve...

This episode of The Hangar Z Podcast is brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . The Hangar Z Podcast welcomes Airborne Public Safety Association CEO/Executive Director Dan Schwarzbach, APSA President Dave Ellis and Broward Sheriff's Office Sergeant Paul Sada. In this episode of The Hangar Z Podcast, we have the opportunity to talk about APSCON 2026 ahe...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Valor Plus .   Today’s episode is a powerful and deeply human conversation centered on service, trust, and taking care of one another in some of the most demanding environments imaginable. Our guest is Dave Wuertz, manager of peer support for PHI Air Medical.   Dave’s story is shaped by a lifetime of servic...

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Valor Plus .   Today’s episode is a powerful and deeply human conversation centered on service, trust, and taking care of one another in some of the most demanding environments imaginable. Our guest is Dave Wuertz, manager of peer support for PHI Air Medical.   Dave’s story is shaped by a lifetime of servic...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . Today’s episode features a true pioneer in airborne law enforcement—retired California Highway Patrol (CHP) pilot John Nielson. With more than 11,000 hours as pilot in command and another 3,400 hours as a second-in-command, John’s career is a masterclass in dedication, innovation,...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . Today’s episode features a true pioneer in airborne law enforcement—retired California Highway Patrol (CHP) pilot John Nielsen. With more than 11,000 hours as pilot in command and another 3,400 hours as a second-in-command, John’s career is a masterclass in dedication, innovation,...

Welcome back to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Plus . Today’s episode comes to you from the floor of Verticon in Atlanta, recorded inside the Vertical Plus booth, where the energy of the industry and the people who drive it were on full display. Our guests are pilots Brian Dunn and Brian Atkinson of Coldstream Helicopters in Kelowna,...