Naval aviator, author and film producer Paco Chierici joins the show. Paco spent twenty years in the Navy, flying the A-6E Intruder, F-14A Tomcat and the F-5 Tiger II. Paco deployed to combat zones from Somalia to Iraq and was stationed aboard carriers including the USS Ranger, Nimitz and Kitty Hawk.

In his career, Paco has accumulated over 3,000 tactical hours and completed over 400 carrier landings. In addition to being an aviator, Paco also is the author of the novel, Lions of the Sky and the producer of the award-winning naval aviator documentary, Speed and Angels, available on Amazon Prime.

Retired Navy Corpsman Nick Nelsen joins the podcast. Nick spent 20 years in the Navy and had as varied a career as one can have. Nick did two separate tours at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, “best deployment ever!”, multiple deployments to Iraq, Japan, the Philippines, the Balkans and finally Afghanistan (where Nick shares his encounter with the Afghan Superman). Nick shares hilarious and inspiring stories of the soldiers he served with and how time and again he saw those young soldiers act in amazingly courageous ways. After retiring from the Navy, Nick got involved with the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), and he details all the many ways that this 120 year old organization serves our nation’s veterans.

Links:
-Nick’s VFW post is 1264-Irving L. Manning Post
–The VFW National Home for Children
–The American Legion
–Disabled American Veterans
–Armed Services Arts Partnership (ASAP)

Retired Brigadier General Don Bolduc joins the podcast for a fascinating, candid, no-nonsense discussion of an Army career that spanned almost four decades. Bolduc’s incredible career began in the enlisted ranks and ended as Commander of Special Operations US-Africa Command. In between, Bolduc earned a degree and became an officer, then a Ranger and eventually on to Q Course and Special Operations.

Bolduc spent time at the staff level in the Pentagon and JSOC, and deployed throughout the world, including multiple combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. Bolduc was among the first US forces in the initial invasion of Afghanistan, shortly after 9/11, and linked up with then-Afghan President Hamid Karzai to help form a government and combat the Taliban and al-Qaeda. During his time in charge of US Special Operations in Africa, Bolduc instituted a program to formally provide a path to treatment for the mental, physical, and spiritual health of soldiers in his command, and has been open about his own struggles with PTSD.

Dru Johnson joins the podcast in a wide-ranging and fascinating conversation. To say his life has been eventful is an understatement. Growing up in Oklahoma, Dru became a skinhead, dropped out of high school and joined a punk band. After some soul-searching and long conversations with his Vietnam-Vet father, Dru decided to join the Air Force, where he served 2 years active duty and 5 years reserve. He volunteered for multiple deployments to the Amazon basin in Colombia where he was part of multi-branch counter-narcotics operations. In the midst of his many jungle deployments, Dru had a Saul on the road to Damascus conversion and became a Christian. This led him to eventually finish his Air Force service and go to college. Working in IT and attending seminary, Dru went on to become an associate pastor of a church in St. Louis, where he spent 8 years. He also spent two years in Scotland and took multiple trips to Kenya to train rural pastors. Dru currently teaches at The King’s College in New York City. He is also director of the Center for Hebraic Thought and hosts a podcast of the same name. Dru also co-hosts the long running OnScript Podcast and is the author of the book Human Rites, as well as many other essays and articles.

Learn more about Dru and connect to all his work here:
https://drujohnson.com/

Ricoh Danielson joins the podcast. Ricoh served in the Army for eight years and then another decade-plus as a private security contractor. Ricoh was involved with the initial invasion of Iraq, which took him to Ramadi on the hunt for Chemical Ali and other members Saddam’s Baath Party in the infamous Deck of Most Wanted Cards. Later on in his career post-Army as a private security contractor, Ricoh found himself in Haiti just days after the 2010 earthquake, back in Iraq, Afghanistan and throughout the Middle East, Africa and Central and South America. This was a fascinating and enlightening conversation with a man who has seen some of the most extreme conditions in the human experience. Ricoh is an entrepreneur, the author of multiple books and still very involved with helping the veteran community.
You can follow Ricoh on Instagram: @ricoh_danielson_

P. S. Barlow joins the podcast. Barlow is a Drill Sergeant in the U.S. Army and is the creator of the online comic strip, G.I. Low. Barlow takes us through his decade-long career training soldiers at the beginning of their Army careers, the importance of good leadership and mentoring, how methods have changed over the years, and how not to lose your voice after a day of shouting at recruits. Barlow also takes a humorous look at his time in Afghanistan and what’s next in his career.

You can find the G.I. Low comic on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/GILowComics/posts/

USAF veteran Chris joins the show and talks about his time as a Crew Chief/Instructor on the F-15 Fighter Jet. Chris details what it takes to keep those birds in the air and the camaraderie and sense of purpose one gets from being on the line. Chris is now an airline pilot, as well as training pilot for advanced military jet skills for aviators.
Check Chris’ Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/dope767driver/?hl=en
And: https://s-211training.com/

Austin Pritchard joins the show. Austin spent 12 years in the Air Force in Security Systems and then later as a Cyber Transport Tech. Austin’s military career took him from Texas, to the Italian Alps, to fly fishing at one of Saddam Hussein’s palaces in Iraq. After leaving the Air Force, Austin became a Marriage and Family Therapist and a pastor. You can learn more about Austin, his work, and ministry, at:
https://www.austinnpritchard.com/