From Balloons to Drones

What happens when one country steals another's airplane? Not just to fly it, but to mass produce it? Dr. Robert M. Farley joins us for a discussion of how intellectual property dominates the world of military aircraft technology. From the Wright Brothers, to the Soviet version of the B-29, to the F-35, air power is all about IP law.

Eileen Bjorkman is a retired USAF Colonel and flight test engineer with over 700 hours in the cockpits of F-4s, F-16s, C-130s, and C-141s. She's also the author of 'Unforgotten in the Gulf of Tonkin: A Story of the U.S. Military's Commitment to Leave No One Behind.' She joins us to talk about combat search and rescue operations in the Vietnam War and the harrowing story of F-8 pilot Willie Sharp.

The Gallipoli Campaign during World War I is not usually connected with the pioneering use of air power, but should it be? We talk to Sterling Michael Pavelec about his new book that talks about the important role air power played at Gallipoli.

Katherine Sharp Landdeck is here to tell us all about the WASPs, the Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II. She's the author of 'The Women with Silver Wings: The Inspiring True Story of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II.' She goes beyond some of the familiar figures like Jackie Cochran and Nancy Love to tell us about other, lesser-known women in the program. And of course, we will talk about Walt Disney, because Brian will find a way!

We're joined by Dr. Peter Westwick, director of the Huntington-USC Aerospace History Project and author of Stealth: The Secret Contest to Invent Invisible Aircraft! We'll talk about the design process of stealth planes like the F-117 and B-2 at Lockheed and Northrop and answer the tough questions, like why did stealth research seem to be focused in California? What role did Russian research play in stealth development? And of course, how is Disney connected to all this?

Hosts Mike Hankins and Brian Laslie are joined by Tyler Morton to discuss his new book, 'From Kites to Cold War: The Evolution of Manned Airborne Reconnaissance.' Not only do we get some incredible stories about aerial surveillance (especially from the WW2-era), but we have a blast talking about our biggest "nerd moments" from the archives, and why that type of work is so powerful and exciting!

To kick off the 75th anniversary year of the end of World War II, we are joined by Stephen Bourque, author of Beyond the Beach, to talk about the allied bombing of occupied France. Through a detailed look at local French sources, combined with official US sources, Bourque provides as thorough--and possibly controversial--assessment of Eisenhower's use of air power.

Today we talk to Dr. Roger Launius, former NASA historian, about the history, legacy, and memory of the Apollo program and the moon landing, at the 50th anniversary of Armstrong's famous steps for all mankind. Looking back after all this time, what does the Apollo program really mean for us today?

Today we're joined by Valerie Insinna, the air warfare reporter for Defense news. She tells us all about the world of defense journalism and reporting, focusing on the realm of aircraft and military air power technology. Of course we can't help but also indulge in some nerdy fandom.

In this episode, we sit down with Dr Mel Deaile, former B-52 and B-2 pilot and Associate Professor at USAF Air University for a talk about his book: 'Always at War: Organizational Culture in Strategic Air Command, 1946-62.' We discuss the early days of SAC and it's culture, as well as the controversies surrounding General Curtis LeMay.