American Warrior Radio

Space Shuttle Commander Eileen Collins has spent more than 872 hours in space and logged 6,751 hours in the cockpits of 30 different types of aircraft.  In 1995 she became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle and then in 1999, the first woman to command a space shuttle mission.  Eileen joins us as part of our educational partnership with the Distinguished Flying Cross Society.

Eileen’s father used to take the family to the airport to watch airplanes take off and land. This first inspired her love of flying. “I was afraid to sign up for lessons because I thought they wouldn’t want to teach a woman to fly. But they were great.”  When she was in pilot training at Vance Air Force Base, the first cadre of women selected to be astronauts were training there at the same time.

She says she was completely accepted in the NASA program and credits the female mission specialists who preceded her.  “We were all in it for the mission and to be the best we could be.”

Eileen shares some of the challenges and dangers of space flight. (She says space debris is currently the greatest threat) Eileen was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for a 1999 mission on the Columbia shuttle. The 2003 Columbia tragedy hit her particularly hard. She was honored to be selected to command the first “return to flight” mission following the Challenger tragedy.

We spend some time discussing the future of space flight including NASA’s plans to return to the moon in 2024 to start building stations. She strongly believes that the public and private space programs complement each other quite well.

Eileen earned her combat stripes flying a C-141 in the invasion of Grenada.

TAKEAWAY: “We choose to fly despite the risks. Unless we fly these early missions we will never make it safer.”

Buchenwald concentration camp was the worst sight Tim Kiniry has ever seen. That is saying a lot considering he spent World War II as part of the 45th Evacuation Hospital, witnessing the horrors of war up close and personal. Tim says he normally fainted at the sight of blood so working in a hospital would not have been his first choice, but “That is what I was ordered to do so I tried to do the best job I could.”

The 45th landed on Omaha Beach on DDAY plus 10. It took them about a week to gather their equipment and set up their hospital 6 miles inland. Tim was briefly assigned to the 618th Medical Clearing Company – a neuro-psychiatric unit that treated combat fatigue and shell shock. He will never forget one soldier who made all four of the invasion landings up to that point in the war.

The 45th would often set up wherever they could find suitable space. In Eugen, Belgium they set up in a school and treated over 7,000 wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. They had several near misses including when the Germans bombed an ammo dump set up a couple hundred yards from their hospital.

Tim says the weather during the Battle of the Bulge was brutal and many of their cases were for frostbite.  They also treated German prisoners and he says overall they were grateful except for one young patient who spat in the doctor’s face.  Despite this, Tim says in his entire time deployed he never once touched a weapon.

Tim’s unit was assigned to set up inside Buchenwald to treat 600 critically ill tuberculosis patients. They had to bathe and delouse all the patients. The prisoners were initially afraid to use the showers Tim’s unit set up because entering the German “showers” meant death.

TAKEAWAY:  “I don’t have any secret to living to 101 years old. I just lived”

Steven Myers is a two-time Air Force Veteran and a self-described “serial entrepreneur”. He has founded no fewer than four companies and was named an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

He became the first American to fly an aircraft into the Kamchatka Peninsula since Charles Lindbergh. That adventure and the joint venture set up through that mission is subject of his best-selling book “Crosswinds: Adventure and Entrepreneurship in the Russian Far East”.

Steve experienced a very rough inner-city childhood and he credits the Air Force for giving him the core values necessary for future success in life. His first enlistment in the Air Force was as a computer maintenance technician.  He then enrolled at Stanford University where he secured an internship at the Jet Propulsion Labs and fell in love with the space program. He knew the only way that dream could happen was to re-enlist in the Air Force and become a test pilot. Unfortunately, just as he entered pilot training, a lot of very seasoned pilots were coming back from Vietnam and the competition was fierce.

A mountain climbing accident would inspire a mindset he would keep for the rest of his life. Steve fell into a deep crevasse, fracturing his pelvis and arm. His climbing companions could not see him and suspected he had been killed. Because his survival was on the line, Steve eventually extricated himself from the canyon just in time to meet the Rangers coming to collect his body. “The cornerstone of courage is optimism. You can’t be an entrepreneur if you can’t be afraid and still push the button.”

One of his employees had been spending a lot of time in Russia following the end of the Cold War. When he pitched the idea of flying into Kamchatka Steve initially thought the idea was absurd. Both the adventure of the that flight and the challenges of setting up the California-Kamchatka Companies joint venture in Russia are beautifully detailed in Crosswinds – including a very surprising ending.

Pike Logan is the main character in a series of sixteen bestselling thrillers by Army Veteran Brad Taylor. The 17th novel in the series, “The Devil’s Ransom” was just released. The series features asymmetric warfare missions practiced by Pike Logan and the extra-legal “Task Force”.

Brad served 21 years in the US Army, 8 years as a member of Delta Force. He serves as a security consultant on asymmetric threats for various agencies when he is not writing. He never had an interest in the military but when his father warned him he would have to join the military if he flunked out of school, Brad began exploring the Army and liked what he saw.

When Brad was courting his future wife he told her he was going to become a Special Forces operator and write a book. His last posting was as an instructor at The Citadel, which gave him time to pursue the second goal. He shares some of the challenges he experienced trying to get published and advice for other aspiring authors.

The Pike Logan series is extremely well researched. Brad and his wife travel to the locations that will be the settings for his novels.  Brad says that “being on the ground” often inspires him to add elements to the story that he originally hadn’t considered. “I can’t describe the culture if I don’t immerse myself in it.” In one case, a hotel charged him $75 for a hamburger and a coke. THAT hotel got blown up in Brad’s next book.

Despite serving at the tip of the spear for so many years, Taylor emphasizes that we must not overlook the contributions of the “average grunt’.

Brad and his wife are ambassadors for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

TAKEAWAY: Brad says one of the greatest challenges in writing a series is character progression. “The human condition is always evolving, my characters must do the same.”

Havok Journal owner Scott Faith joins us for an update on all things military and first responder. Scott begins by announcing the new Havok Journal partnership with Epoch Times called “Battlefields.” Battlefields will include a podcast and five or more articles weekly.

Next we discuss New Year’s resolutions for Veterans.  Several of these resolutions parallel the mission of American Warrior Radio; telling their story and engaging members of their community. Other resolutions include not being afraid to ask for help and helping their fellow Veterans. Scott strongly believes that Veterans should not act as if the world owes them something other than a fair shake and the benefits they were promised.

Britta Reque-Dragicevic published an amazing article called “Combat Guilt, Forgiveness and Mercy”. This is one of the best pieces I have read on the subject. Even more so given that Britta is not a Veteran or a trained psychologist.  She also has a great blog called “Life After War.”

Scott expounds on the article “What’s Really Keeping You Up At Night” written by Megan Thatford. Her article explores the fact that almost sixty percent of Veterans suffer from insomnia post deployment. Exhaustion can be particularly dangerous for people like military and first responders whose job is to serve and protect other people. “If you are not getting good rest, you are not making good decisions and are putting other people in danger.”

Scott and I share what figuratively keeps US up at night. For Scott it is the long-term unintended consequences of Ukraine, China and their efforts to grow their presence in the world and the fentanyl epidemic. Mine are the economy, the vulnerability of our utility infrastructure and cyber-security.

The Second Mission Foundation helps military and first responders pursue their “second mission” by providing micro-grants and helping them publish books.

TAKEAWAY:  “Don’t share your story with anyone unless you absolutely trust them to hold you the way you need to be held throughout your transition.”

Combat Control Foundation founding members Mike Lamonica and Mike West join us to discuss some of our military’s most highly trained warriors. The motto of Combat Controllers is “First There” and is derived from World War II when Pathfinders were inserted in advance of other troops in order to provide weather information and visual guidance for inbound aircraft.

Today’s Combat Control personnel are trained in air traffic control, Joint Terminal Attack Control, parachuting, explosives and combat diving. Their qualification course has one of the highest attrition rates in the military. Not only is the physical training tough but the technical training for things like air traffic control also causes washouts. The first woman to complete the arduous training graduated in April.  Five of the eleven Air Force Cross (2nd only to the Medal of Honor) medals awarded during the Global War on Terror went to Combat Controllers.

They often deploy alone, augmenting other Special Forces units such as Green Berets or Navy SEALs. They are also used for domestic tragedies such as natural disasters.

Mike Lamonica served 24 years as a Combat Controller, deploying to Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Angola & Bosnia. He was awarded a Bronze Star and had FOUR combat jumps, a record not seen since World War II.

Mike West wore the scarlet beret for 30 years and was awarded a Silver Star for his actions during Operation Medusa. Operation Medusa involved 15 running battles between Green Beret’s and Taliban forces over several days. Among other things, Mike continuously exposed himself to enemy fire in order to get ordinance on target and guided strafing runs as close as 60 meters to friendly forces.

Mike and Mike chose to create the Combat Control Foundation because they were fielding phone calls every week from people who needed help and they didn’t have the resources. The Foundation provides support for the families of Combat Controllers with a focus in four areas; Resiliency, Health, Education and Heritage.

TAKEAWAY: “Steel sharpens steel. You’ve got ONE person who can change the entire battlefield. One combat controller with 15 Special Forces can literally take on hundreds or thousands of the enemy.”

“Turn and Burn: A Fighter Pilot’s Memories and Confessions” recounts Darrell Ahrens’ exploits as an Air Force fighter pilot. Darrell flew combat in Vietnam and was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross and 13 air medals.

His children had been asking him to write some notes of his time in the Air Force but he kept putting it off. While visiting his mother on the family farm, he picked up a book about the history of Platte County, Nebraska. The bio pages of one particular individual prominent in development of the County really impressed him. He asked his aunt if anyone knew anything about that man. She replied “Why Darrel, he was your great grandfather.”   Darrell wished his great grandfather had left some documentation of HIS life and motivated him to finally write the account of his exploits for his children.

Darrell had dreamed of being a fighter pilot since he was a child, so he joined the Marines because he heard it was easier to get a pilot slot in that branch. When that didn’t pan out, he took an honorable discharge and joined the Air Force.

One of my favorite parts of Turn and Burn is Darrell’s description of his training and what a dangerous business it can be even when someone isn’t shooting at you. I also enjoyed the fact that many of his confessions are quite funny like the time he flew an unauthorized air show.

Darrell flew seven different aircraft during his career and while he says it is difficult to name his favorite, the F-105 was the most impressive and comfortable while the F-4 was the best all-around plane.

TAKEAWAY:  Darrell shares the main quality of a good fighter pilot is aggressiveness and a willingness to push the boundaries. However, Turn and Burn is full of instances where this type of attitude nearly got Darrell in trouble or killed.

Wade Hubbard only spent five years in the Air Force. During that time he was awarded FIVE Distinguished Flying Cross medals, Thirty Air Medals and the Purple Heart. “Mother” Hubbard joins us for our regular feature in partnership with the Distinguished Flying Cross Society. The mission of the DFC Society is to honor, preserve and teach the legacy or heroism or extraordinary achievement in aerial flight for which the Distinguished Flying Cross is awarded.

Wade wanted to fly and decided to enlist rather than wait to be drafted. He earned his commission in 1968 and was assigned navigator wings.  He flew in Vietnam as a “back seater” in an F-4 Phantom completing 427 ½ combat missions.

Wade participated in both Operation Linebacker and Operation Linebacker 2 – the largest heavy bomber strikes launched by the Air Force since World War II. Bombers attacked logistical targets such as transportation infrastructure, marshalling yards and other targets designed to reduce the ability of the North Vietnamese to fight. Both campaigns achieved their objective of getting the North Vietnamese back the negotiation table but at a high cost; 92 B-52 crew members were lost. During the Linebacker campaigns Wade flew missions to protect the bombers from air threats and also provide ground attack.

The Vietnam Peace Accords were signed on January 27, 1972. But the war was not over for Wade Hubbard. President Nixon continued what some called a “personal” war. Six days before he was scheduled to return home, Wade and his pilot were shot down over Cambodia. He ejected at 20,000 feet which tore off his helmet and oxygen mask, broke his shoulder and caused him to pass out until he reached an altitude where he could breathe again.

TAKEAWAY: Wade will always be grateful to the crews that rescued him because the Khmer Rouge did not take prisoners and would have probably shot him on the spot.

The P-51 Mustang changed the course of the air war in Europe, but it almost didn’t make it off the assembly line.  The story of the Mustang’s evolution and the pilots that flew it in combat is the subject of a great new book by David & Margaret White titled “ Wings of War; The World War II Fighter Plane That Saved the Allies and the Believers Who Made It Fly.”

The genesis of the book is Margaret’s 103 year old father who served as a ground officer with the 20th Fighter Group in England and often regaled her with stories. David was already a published author so the two teamed up to write “Wings of War”.

The Mustang was originally developed for use by the British Royal Air Force but did not inspire interest among US Military leaders.  The story of the P-51 might have ended there were it not for Tommy Hitchock, a former WWI pilot who fought the bureaucracy as ferociously as the Mustang fought the Germans.  His advocacy for the aircraft was critical. Margaret shares that a certain level of bias against using a British manufactured engine in the Mustang was an issue. Outright corruption by Major General Bennett Myers also played a role in holding the Mustang back. Myers was eventually courts martialed.

When the nimble P-51 was introduced, it was able to outfly anything the Luftwaffe could put in the air. Most importantly, it had the fuel capacity to escort the bombers all the way to the heart of Germany and back.

We also discuss some of the very interesting pilots who flew the Mustang including Don Blakeslee. Blakeslee was such a fan of the Mustang that he told his commander he could have his pilots trained in 24 hours. Many of the pilots learned to fly the P-51 on their way to the target.

TAKEAWAY:  Pilot Joe Peterburs said “I’m nineteen years old. They gave me a plane with 2,000 horsepower and six 50 caliber machine guns and they said go have fun. I had fun!”