Author: sothereiwas

Student pilot judgment takes center stage in this absurdly true tale of near-misses, smart calls, and the mysterious power of the “E-word.” We welcome Chock as he fights through weather, maintenance gremlins, and schedule chaos on the winding road to his private pilot check ride. From an RV-12 with opinions to a Cirrus with a parachute and sparrows doing formation work on the runway, he keeps choosing discretion over disaster—and […]

Booz, a freshly-minted CFI, New Hampshirite, and RePete’s daughter—whose glider-to-airline path includes a first solo at 15, a daddy-daughter cross-country in a Grumman Tiger, and a commercial check ride where a simulated engine roughness forced a wrong-side pattern call (good judgment > dogma). We talk density altitude (rude), VMC demos (also leg fatigue), and why hypoxia makes your alphabet wander off the page — thanks, hyperbaric chamber! An alternator gremlin […]

Tito brought stories that will make you laugh, wince, and wonder why anyone gives gunners ANY spare time! Kool-Aid boots and hot-sauce toilets are savage reminders that no one is safe in a combat zone! Tito’s journey took him from slinging bombs as a “Load Toad,” to fighting fires in baked-potato suits, to strapping into the legendary AC-130 Spectre gunship—where 105mm recoil could literally make the airplane flinch. He survived […]

This special mid week episode of So There I Was takes a slight detour from our usual lineup of aviators and aircrew—but it’s still all about aviation at heart. Our guest, Mark, from Long Island Watch Co., joined us to share the story behind a limited-run Harrier commemorative watch designed in collaboration with the folks at Patuxent River Naval Air Station (PAX River). PAX, the Navy’s legendary flight test center, […]

Retired Marine AV-8B Harrier pilot, “Cutter,” brings stories that are equal parts funny and awe-inspiring. He kicks off with the 2005 twelve-ship departure from al-Asad—skimming the Saudi desert on fumes, praying the tankers showed up—before pushing through a 10.5-hour odyssey to Rota, Spain. He rewinds to OCS at Camp Upshur with 300 candidates lined up for a cold gamma-globulin shot, then to flight school in T-2s that needed a literal […]

IIn this wild, laugh-until-your-ribs-hurt episode of So There I Was, we dive into Marine Corps Harrier pilot stories that blur the line between combat history and barroom legend. We round up a squadron of Harrier pilots — including Spiko, who joins mid-flight — for tales of 8.5-G nozzle breaks in the Philippines, midair collisions, midnight carrier deck landings, and questionable uses for government-issued canteens. “Mongoose” lets the squadron run wild, […]

Strap in and try not to twist your balls. This week’s episode goes full afterburner with the “Young Guns” of VMA-542: Auto, Disco, Pisser, Spiko, Strut, and Vapor join Fig and RePete to recount the wild, the ridiculous, and the occasionally flammable moments of Marine Harrier squadron glory. There’s a missile shoot that nearly ends in a self-induced jet barbecue, poker games that could fund small countries, and bar fights […]

This week, we flip the script—Fig and RePete aren’t hosting, we’re the guests on The Flying Dutchman Show. Dutch dives into the stories, chaos, and camaraderie that define life as a Marine Harrier pilot, pulling out unforgettable tales from our years in the cockpit. From flight school struggles and first carrier landings to NATOPS checkride drama and mid-air close calls, no part of Marine aviation is off limits. You’ll hear […]

So there he was…35 feet above the water, at night, trying to airlift survivors. What happens next involves a suitcase, a shrug, and one hell of a throw. Join So There I Was as Coast Guard helo pilot “Sticks” returns to recount harrowing rescues during the Texas floods—where flying into chaos is just another Tuesday. From medevacs that look more like belly-flop contests to triaging 170 people solo in rising […]

From screw-up recruit to revered drill instructor, First Sergeant John Crouch takes us deep into the crucible of Marine Corps transformation. In this gripping episode, Crouch recalls his early days at bootcamp, his infamous misstep during the Laws of Land Warfare class, and the brutal but formative experience of Drill Instructor School at Parris Island. He shares harrowing tales of PT punishment, spit-shined leadership, and the unwavering standards that mold […]