Fighter Pilot Podcast

The 'Century Series' kicks off this week with a discussion on the McDonnell F-101 Voodoo. Retired Royal Canadian Air Force Major John "Stace" Stacey joins guest cohost Bruce Gordon to discuss this late 1940's-designed interceptor that was once equipped with nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles and a tactical nuke for a planned one-way mission should the Cold War ever turn hot.

Listener questions addressed on this episode include a challenge on the show's claim that recent guest Caesar "Rico" Rodriguez is the "only man to down three enemy planes in the past 40 years," why the F/A-18 does not start with the single push of a button like the F-35, who decides which Navy squadrons transition to new jets when, and whether external drop tanks and empty rocket pods can be dropped on targets.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez. This episode was produced by our friends at the MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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It was a busy holiday season and we want to introduce everyone to former USAF fighter pilot Bruce Gordon since he'll be back to help with the coming Century Series episodes. So enjoy this audio replay of our late-November Happy Hour discussion and we'll be back on the 14th for episode 101 on the F-101 Voodoo!

This episode was produced by our friends at the MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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Most of us, most of the time, focus our energies on where we're going and rarely, if ever, pause to consider where we've been. Not so on this episode of the Fighter Pilot Podcast—it's our 100th! And so we're taking a look back at some of our greatest moments during our three years in show biz.

That's right, on this episode we discuss listener favorite episodes and guests, the most downloaded episodes, shows that surprised you the most, and much more with our usual host Jell-O and a cast of characters you already know and love. Before wrapping up, our friend and podcasting mentor Rob Kibbe returns to help wrap out our look back and then—as has become our annual tradition—helps look forward at the year to come.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez. This episode was produced by our friends at the MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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The Canadian and American forces of NORAD, or the North American Aerospace Defense Command, spend 24/7/365 monitoring the airspace of our two countries--and indeed most of the world--to ensure threats to our two nations are identified and managed.

But not everything that enters our airspace is a "threat." Every year, NORAD ensures the safe and unhindered passage of jolly ol' St. Nick and his precious cargo of Christmas cheer to all the North American children on his 'nice list.'

Learn all about how Santa Claus is detected, tracked, and even escorted on the NORAD Santa Tracker website and this exciting bonus episode, produced by our friends at the MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

We're taking a break this week and instead replaying portions of our summer 2020 Happy Hour discussion with retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Cesar "Rico" Rodriguez, the real "only man to shoot down three enemy planes in the last 40 years" (come on, Ed Harris, pfft.)

The full video discussion can be found on our found Patreon page and be sure to check out Jamie Hunter's article about Rico at The Warzone.

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Situational awareness is a precious commodity, especially in armed conflict where the 'fog of war' invariably confuses and distracts commanders. Dedicated aerial platforms are vital to collecting the information needed to ensure warfighters have as accurate a sense of the real world as possible. For Naval Aviation, the key enabler in this regard is the Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye.

On this episode, former U.S. Navy lieutenant commander and Hawkeye test pilot Jonathan "Gersh" Ulbricht joins us to describe the longest consecutively serving carrier-based airplane in Navy history. And since so much of this platform's mission is based not on the pilots up front but on the flight officers inside, our former Air Intercept Communications episode 31 guest, now-Captain Alan Schiaffino returns to help us understand the Hawkeye from an NFO's perspective.

Listener questions include when we might cover the B-36 Peacemaker, fighter pilot fitness, and why the F-14 Tomcat uses spoilers in lieu of ailerons. If you're into rotary-wing sure to check out The Low Level Hell Podcast.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez / announcements by Clint Bell. This episode was produced by our friends at the MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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Bomber Month concludes with the North American B-25 Mitchell.

This week, Larry Kelley discusses the World War II bomber that was the first to strike the Japanese homeland in the infamous Doolittle Raid of April 1942. Mr. Kelley describes all the usual 'aircraft series' topics and what it took to personally acquire the B-25J Panchito that is part of the Delaware Aviation Museum.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez / announcements by Clint Bell. This episode was produced by our friends at The MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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Former U.S. Navy Blue Angels flight leaders Captains Ryan "Guido" Bernacchi and Eric "Popeye" Doyle join Fighter Pilot Podcast host Vincent "Jell-O" Aiello for a discussion on the team's transition to the Boeing F/A-18E and F-model Super Hornets following 34 consecutive years flying the F/A-18A-D Hornet.

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Bomber Month marches on with our first foreign bomber to be featured: the Avro Vulcan.

This week, retired Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Martin Withers joins us to discuss this British Cold War-era strategic bomber that found notoriety for a long-range strike on an enemy airfield in the opening hours of the Falkland Islands War. Martin was part of that strike and went on to fly a Vulcan at airshows until its final sundown in 2015.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez / announcements by Clint Bell. This episode was produced by our friends at The MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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Here on the Fighter Pilot Podcast it’s once again Bomber Month!

First up this year is the venerable Boeing B-29 Superfortress and joining us is Allen Benzing of the Commemorative Air Force B-29 / B-24 Squadron based in Dallas, Texas. Once an enlisted U.S. Air Force airman, Al worked his way up through civilian flying and is now a Superfortress aircraft commander and instructor for the CAF. Not only that but he knows a thing or two about the B-29's role in WW2 and shares it here with guest host Trevor Boswell.

Check out the CAF's B-29 tour schedule here.

Bumper music by Jaime Lopez / announcements by Clint Bell. This episode was produced by our friends at The MuscleCar Place Podcast Network.

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