Episode #119: KC-135 Stratotanker Down in Operation Epic Fury
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode 119 â When Tankers Collide: A Hard Day for the KC-135 Community. Welcome to Episode 119 of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast. Iâm your host, Mark Hasara â retired Air Force KC-135 pilot, Weapons Officer, and a veteran of four wars. For over 60 years, aviation has been my passion. I spent my career flying the KC-135 Stratotanker around the world, supporting combat missions and doing the job most people never see: Passing gas to airplanes in the middle of the night⌠in the middle of a war. If youâre watching the news about air operations around Iran, what youâre...
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Episode #120: Rob "Z-Man" Zettel, the American MiG Pilot
Lessons From The Cockpit
đ¨ SECRET MiGs tangling in Area 51? This is how we learned to win. Realistic training with incredible results on the battlefield! Welcome to Episode 120 of the Lessons from the Cockpit Show! Iâm your host, Mark Hasaraâretired Air Force KC-135 Weapons Officerâand for over 60 years, Iâve lived and breathed aviation. This episode pulls back the curtain on one of the most top-secret units in Air Force history. Why is the U.S. the 500-pound gorilla in air-to-air combat? Very few nations want to tangle with the buzzsaw created by American air superiority aircraft, their pilots, and...
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Episode #113: Strategy and Tactics for the Surge with Joe Katuzeinski
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode â Lessons from the Cockpit Welcome to another mission-ready episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit show! Iâm your host Lt. Col. Mark Hasara, retired Air Force KC-135 pilot, Weapons School graduate, and aviation fanatic for over 60 years. Strap in for this oneâbecause weâre bringing serious airpower experience to the table. Joining me today is one of the smartest Air Force officers Iâve ever worked withâLt. Col. Joe âTAZZâ Katuzeinski. He and I go way back to our Weapons and Tactics days at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa in the '90s. Since then, TAZZ has led combat...
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Episode #112: When do you CEASE FIRE?
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode 112 â How Do You Know When to Stop the Fight? Welcome back to another airpower-packed episode of Lessons from the Cockpit! Iâm your host Lt. Col. Mark Hasara, retired KC-135 Weapons Officer and Joint Specialty Officer. For 60 years, Iâve lived and breathed aviation. Today we are going to talk about a very tough aspect of planning for war! Hereâs the question Iâve been getting all week: âMark, how do you know when itâs time to stop shooting?â How does a war end? Who decides when the mission is complete? And what happens if we stop too lateâor too soon? This...
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Episode #111: Operation Rising Lion and US Response Options
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode 111 â Operation Rising Lion: Israelâs Knockout Blow to Iran! Strap in for the 111th episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit show! Iâm Mark Hasara, retired Air Force KC-135 pilot, Weapons School graduate, and the guy whoâs been obsessed with aviation for over 60 years. This episode dives into one of the most aggressive and precise modern air campaigns weâve seen in decadesâOperation Rising Lion. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) just delivered a massive punch to Iranâs military command, nuclear program scientists, religious leaders, and ballistic missile...
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Episode #110 â The Drone Swarm Wake-Up Call: Is the US and our Allies Ready?
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode 110 â The Drone Swarm Wake-Up Call: Is the US and our Allies Ready? Welcome to the 110th episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit show! Iâm Mark Hasara, former Air Force KC-135 pilot, Weapons School graduate, and author of Tanker Pilot. For 60 years, aviation has been my worldâfrom flying gas station in the sky to mission planning at the highest levels of command. This episode is a battle cry. đĽ Ukraine Just Changed the Air Warfare Game Over the weekend, Ukraine launched one of the boldest moves weâve ever seen in modern air warfare: a long-range drone swarm strike...
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Episode #109 â From MiG-21s to the A-10 Hawg: The Incredible Journey of Major Joszph âBoaratâ Jonas
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ EPISODE 109 â From MiG-21 to A-10 Hawg: The Incredible Journey of Lt Col Joszph âBoaratâ Jonas Welcome back to Lessons from the Cockpit, the show that brings you stories and lessons learned from aviators who've been there, done that, and brought the jet home. Iâm Mark HasaraâKC-135 instructor pilot, Air Force Weapons School grad, author of Tanker Pilot, and your host for Episode 109. This oneâs going to hit you right between the afterburners. âď¸ From Opposing Forces to Brothers-in-Arms My guest is Cliff Wilson, an Air Force C-141 Starlifter driver and UPT instructor in...
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Episode #108 â The Tanker Worldâs in Trouble: ARSAG, Anaconda, and Global Tensions on the Nationâs DIME.
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ EPISODE #108 â The Tanker Worldâs in Trouble: ARSAG, Anaconda, and Global Tensions on the Nationâs DIME Strap in and listen up, warriors. Welcome to Episode 108 of the Lessons from the Cockpit Show. Iâm Lt Col Mark Hasara, USAF (Ret.)âKC-135 pilot, Weapons School grad, Joint Specialty Officer, and your host for this mission. I just got back from Air Refueling Systems Advisory Group or ARSAG 2025 at Planet Hollywood in Vegasâa gathering of the best and sharpest minds in global air refueling planning and operations. Senior leaders from the USAF, Royal Air Force, and RAAF, and...
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Episode #107 â Hercules to Hawgs: Flying Both Ends of the Fight with Col. Derek âWoodyâ Oaks
Lessons From The Cockpit
đď¸ Episode 107 â Hercules to Hawgs: Flying at Both Ends of the Fight with Col. Derek âWoodyâ Oaks. Welcome aboard the 107th sortie of the Lessons from the Cockpit Show Iâm Lt Col Mark Hasara, USAF (Ret.), KC-135 Weapons Officer and your pilot for todayâs mission. Iâve flown jets, built war plans, and stayed hopelessly addicted to aviation for over 60 years. This week? You're in for one hell of a ride. After two attempts, we finally locked in this high-value target: Col. Derek âWoodyâ Oaks, a pilot who flew both ends of the Air Force spectrumâfrom hauling cargo in the...
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Episode #104: Black Jets and Gucci Birds with Retired Lt Col Mike Ethridge
Lessons From The Cockpit
Welcome to Episode 104 of Lessons from the Cockpit! Iâm Mark Hasara, former KC-135 pilot, author of Tanker Pilot: Lessons from the Cockpit, and a lifelong aviation fanatic. For over 60 years, aviation has been my passion, and this show brings you stories from the cockpit, the mission planning room, and beyond. This week, I sit down with Mike Ethridge, a longtime friend and fellow Air Force aviator. We met as cadets at BYUâs ROTC Detachment 855, and he went on to fly the KC-10A Extender, KC-135s and every Boeing airframe Delta Airlines has flown around the world. Whatâs in This...
info_outlineWelcome to the sixty-ninth episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast! I'm your host Mark Hasara, former US Air Force KC-135 pilot and author of the book Tanker Pilot, now on the Air Mobility Command Leadership Library reading list of General Mike Minihan!
This past weekend I attended the Tailhook Association's 2023 convention at the Nugget Resort in Sparks, Nevada as a guest of Admiral Bill Gortney. I was asked to be part of the Operation Iraqi Freedom panel on Friday afternoon discussing the air refueling plan for the Shock and Awe campaign. This podcast episode discusses events and people I met while there. Bottom Line Up Front... this was a fantastic convention and I would admonish all of you to become members of this extraordinary organization of Naval Aviation and Aviators!
This episode of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast is supported by the book Tanker Pilot: Lessons from the Cockpit found in all four formats on Amazon: hardack, softback with black and white photos, Kindle and Audible which has an extra file download containing the thirty-two color pictures.
Lessons from the Cockpit is also supported by Wall Pilot, custom aviation art for the walls of your home, office, or hanger. There are 133 Ready-to-Print four, six, and eight-foot-long very detailed and researched profile graphics of your favorite aircraft printed on vinyl you can peel off and stick to any flat surface. Wall Pilot's squadron and unit patches have not faded nor come off several trucks and boats, a testimony to their quality!
The famous "Felix Squadron", VF-31 Tomcatters, flew combat missions over Baghdad on the opening night of Operation Iraqi Freedom's Shock and Awe air campaign. The Carrier Air Wing Fourteen Commander, Captain Kevin "KC" Albright, and his Deputy Commander Captain Scott "NOTSO" Swift had their names on this F-14D Tomcat, callsign BANDWAGON 100. This print shows the aircraft armed for the opening night mission to Baghdad carrying air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons.
One of the profiles I took with me to Hook 23 was the VF-31 Tomcatters flagship F-14D Tomcat, part of the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN airwing flying combat missions out of the Northern Arabian Gulf. This is Navy Commander Paul "BUTKUS" Haas the Tomcatters Skipper personal jet during Shock and Awe.
My good friend Captain Stephen "Moose" Laukaitis was the Deputy Air Wing Commander of Carrier Airwing Eight during Shock and Awe. His VFA-87 WAR PARTY F-18C Hornet which flew missions during the Shock and Awe air campaign is available from Wall Pilot.
Thanks for downloading and listening to this episode! I hope you enjoyed my "After Action Report" on the 2023 Tailhook Association convention. The Industry Floor was just incredible... being able to fly an F-35 simulator was a lot of fun. This and previous episodes of the Lessons from the Cockpit podcast can be downloaded off my website at markhasara.com
Look forward to talking with you next week!