Shows / So There I Was
So There I Was
So There I Was” is a weekly aviation podcast and YouTube show featuring true pilot stories from fighter pilots, airline captains, helicopter pilots, and other military and civilian aviators. “So – There I was.” It’s how ALL great aviation tales begin! Join hosts Fig and Repete as they bring in some great aviation raconteurs to relate the glamorous, hilarious, poignant, tragic, and incredible tales of aviation. Fig and Repete met more than 30 years ago as Marine Attack pilots in Marine Attack…
Episodes
So There I WasDoober and Whiskey-6 Take Over the Watch on YL-37 Episode 236
Doober and Whiskey-6 take over the watch on YL-37, a combat-veteran Marine UH-34D. Fifty-four bullet holes, one crossbow story, and zero chance of saying no.
So There I WasWhy Smart Pilots Do Dumb Things Episode 235
Why Smart Pilots Do Dumb Things is the title of Heater’s paper. It helped save the Red Eagles. However, this episode opens with a different lesson: never…
So There I WasClara Ship! Episode 234
“Clara Ship” is what A-6 Intruder pilot Duker radioed when he couldn’t even see the carrier. Forget the ball. He couldn’t find the…
So There I WasUnbreakable Wings Episode 233
Navy P-3 pilot Derek "DA" Adametz beat a collapsed lung and Hodgkin's lymphoma, then fought the waiver board all the way to squadron command.
So There I WasIf You're Gonna Blow Up Episode 232
F-100 pilot Ike flew 195 combat missions with an iron sight and nerves of steel. He takes us from night close air support to a 50-pound-fuel landing to the…
So There I WasGuns Are Where It's At Episode 231
Retired Marine Lt. Col. Tim "Monk" Miller nearly punched out mid-nap over Ramadi, then built the Strike Fighter League, where guns are where it's at.
So There I WasRope Trick Episode 230
Vietnam-era Huey pilot RoadRunner joins RePete and Kemo for combat missions, near-disasters, and the Rope Trick — a Thailand R&R story he never fully explains.
So There I WasA Thousandth of an Inch of Trouble Episode 229
This week's episode is a lighter one. It's just Fig and RePete, no guest, trading stories while juggling schedules and a certain eye surgery on the calendar…
So There I WasSemper Gumby: Remembering Sticks Episode 228
This week's episode honors Coast Guard rescue pilot John "Sticks" Hall with his brother-in-law's eulogy and son Tyler's letter, plus a night-divert tale from…
So There I WasI Never Exceeded 5' Episode 227
5 Feet — that’s the altitude Roadrunner held on a self-appointed decoy mission in Vietnam, and it’s the heart of Episode 227. It’s also the…
So There I WasSemper Paratus, Farewell Sticks Episode 226
Farewell Sticks is the hardest episode we've ever had to record. On August 20th, we lost our friend, producer, and co-host John "Sticks" Hall in a small plane…
So There I WasFlight Path: He Who Dies with the Most Laugh Wrinkles Wins Episode 225
Retired C-141 pilot and author Chill-Rob McD joins Fig and RePete for a night of Starlifter chaos: a Dutch roll at 35,000 feet, a mid-air fight with a runaway…
So There I WasRace to the Shear Switch Episode 224
Race to the Shear Switch is exactly what it sounds like. You either cut the cable, or the cable decides your night for you. On Episode 224, retired Coast Guard…
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Coasties in Space Episode 223
This week's Coast Guard aviation stories come courtesy of a special guest co-host: Deuce, a newly retired Coast Guard aviator (and, briefly, the service's…
So There I WasSeeing it Through Episode 222
An update on Fig's serious crash and injuries and an AMAZING story of heroism under fire in Vietnam!
So There I WasLt. Jones Needs a Ride Episode 221
RePete opens the show and a call with Sticks about buying an airplane. Apparently, Sticks needed an airplane-shaped hole in his finances! Before that, two…
So There I WasFig's Health Update
Fig was involved in a serious crash on Thursday - 16 July. A Short update on his condition.
So There I WasPutty, Lawman, Gallo and Candyman Episode 220
Putty talks Camp Bastion Attack in Sept of 2012, Lawman describes the most legitimate ejection ever made and Candyman talks traffic tickets in a war zone!
So There I WasPut a Booger on the Winshield Episode 219
Marine Corps aviator Maui (call sign Cobra-31) joins RePete and Fig for stories spanning three decades of naval aviation: serving under Colonel Don Conroy —…
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Harrier Sundown: Monster and Rizzo’s Stories Episode 218
In Episode 218 of So There I Was, Fig & RePete bring listeners two stories recorded live at the Harrier Sundown gathering in North Carolina. First up is…
So There I WasWe Declined to Apologize for Returning Fire Episode 217
Marine Cobra pilot X-Man flew combat in both Grenada and Beirut — in the same month. He walks RePete and Fig through his path from a test pilot neighbor in…
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Crossing the Pond: No, Really! Episode 216
This week’s episode was recorded live at King Mackerel’s Beach Tavern Bar & Grill in Moorehead City, NC, right after the historic Harrier Sundown Ceremony at…
So There I WasScrape a Hole and Hang On: Buggsy's on Welded Wing Episode 215
Buggsy joins us to talk Flight school, Joining the Navy, Flying Harriers, Sundown Ceremony and more!
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Don't Bother Logging It Episode 213
Col Bill Wehrung - Horny sits with us to talk Naval Academy, Marine Aviation - including 235 combat missions in Vietnam, getting hit twice and an amazing…
So There I WasBelly Up on Lead: The Growler Midair Episode 212
Fig & RePete go over several aviation topics - including the F/A-18 Growler Mid Air collision in Mountain Home Idaho, last week.
So There I WasI Can't Run That Far Episode 211
Brain joins us to talk Flight School, Harriers, Drones and F-35s! Funny, touching... Don't miss this Great American!
So There I WasI Flew Through the Afterburner Plume 'cuz I Heard It Episode 210
Bonk, Top Gun, Marine MAWTS-1 and Test Pilot Stories kick off with him bobbing in the Pacific after less than 500 flight hours in total flight time! Actually…
So There I WasGet Out of Burner, Bro! Episode 209
This week kicks off with Kemo back in the saddle, and it goes sideways immediately! Actually, this one starts fast. No warmup. No easing in. Just straight into…
So There I WasNew Life for YL-37 Episode 208
Doober comes back to tell of his acquisition of former US Marine Corps H-34 helicopter, YL-37. The helicopter restoration story starts with a mission that…
So There I WasThe Boy on the Fence Became the Boss Episode 207
This is part two with Al Cisneros, and this time, it opens in a hurry. No notice. Grab the jet. Haul critical intel. Get it to Saigon—fast. Actually, what…
So There I WasYou're Marginally in Control & in Charge of Nothing Episode 206
This episode drops you straight into one of those situations pilots train for—but hope never happens. A routine mission turns serious fast when the fuel state…
So There I WasThat's Not Our Runway! Episode 205
Fig & RePete kick back for a raw hangar-talk session unpacking aviation’s razor edge: LaGuardia runway crash layers failing Swiss-cheese style, sim freezes…
So There I WasUntethered Episode 204
The C-130 flight engineer is a disappearing breed. However, the stories remain. In this episode of So There I Was, DC pulls back the curtain on high-stakes…
So There I WasI Can’t Even Spell Jumpseat Episode 203
Naval aviation stories rarely go as planned. This episode of So There I Was features Matt “Taco” Bell sharing his wildest moments... This episode of So There I…
So There I WasNasty's Worst Day in the Navy Episode 202
Nasty’s worst day Navy starts when a young Tomcat hopeful hears “you’re a qual” on the radio, then “you’re a disqual” at the ladder. Consequently, that gut…
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He Heard Me Go By Episode 201
He Heard Me Go By pilot story comes from Navy pilot Stretch Curran, who flew the massive A-3 / EA-3 Skywarrior “Whale,” the largest jet routinely launched from…
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Royce Williams Medal of Honor: 1v7 MiG Dogfight Episode 200
Royce Williams Medal of Honor recipient joins the show to recount a legendary tale. Imagine bringing a knife to a gunfight. In this case, the knife is a…
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Slightly Disappointed They Didn't Shoot At Us Episode 199
This aviation podcast episode explores real pilot stories, flight safety lessons, and ATC coordination. We dive into the extreme demands of flying…
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Never Relax When Things Are Going Well Episode 198
Discover gripping F-106 pilot stories, test pilot emergencies, and aviation safety lessons from a career pushing airplanes—and luck—to the brink. Buckle up for…
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John Steinbeck’s Ecstacy Leak Episode 197
In 1967, legendary author John Steinbeck climbed into a Huey helicopter over Vietnam—and what he wrote afterward was so raw, so strange, and so brutally honest…
So There I WasThe Beginning of My Crime Spree Episode 196
Welcome to a sobering and powerful episode of So There I Was. This week, we explore incredible Hanoi Hilton survival stories with retired Navy Captain Mike…
So There I WasDrop & Give Me 1 Episode 195
So there I was… five miles from the runway at Stansted, flaps moving from 35 to 50 on an MD-11, when the airplane abruptly rolled to nearly 60 degrees of bank…
So There I WasPushing Tin Episode 194
In this episode of So There I Was, Fig and RePete are joined by Kemo and they sit down with two air traffic controllers to talk about what pilots never see —…
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Ready, Sleep, Now Episode 193
New Year’s Eve, no guest, and somehow the cockpit still turns into a full-blown sitcom. Fig & RePete kick off with a takeoff that goes sideways at V1 when…
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That's All She's Got Episode 192
This week's So There I Was episode is a Hangout -- that happens when you put pilots, controllers, and a few proud troublemakers in the same virtual room and…
So There I WasJust Trying to Keep This from Becoming a Musical Episode 191
This is what happens when you put a Navy Tomcat legend behind a camera and let him tell the story his way. Heater takes us from KC-135 tanker ops with that…
So There I WasTurns Like a Racquetball Off a Wall Episode 190
This week's sponsor: Antigravity A1 Drone. Learn more at sothereiwas.us/antigravity Episode 190 is what happens when you hand the mic to Captain CJ “Heater”…
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A Little Slice of Hell Episode 189
In this week’s episode of So There I Was, Ike joins us with stories so wild they make the Quigley, Beirut, and Cherry Point weather sound like minor…
So There I WasFrankentanker Episode 188
B-2 stealth bomber test pilot Sparky joins So There I Was to explain why the world’s sneakiest bomber still can’t go direct to Liberal, Kansas without a…
So There I WasSwitch Up, Auto Missile, Eat a Sandwich Episode 187
Strap in, because Sparky’s ride from the C-17 to the B-2 is basically the aviation version of “What could possibly go wrong?” — except when everything did go…
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Compressor Stalls and Varsity Jets Episode 186
So There I Was dives into the UPS MD-11 crash, compressor stalls, and why some jets are “varsity airplanes." Fig kicks things off with a flaming T-45…
So There I WasIf Your Friend Jumped Off a Bridge Episode 185
Six Marines. One table. Zero chill. This round-robin mayhem starts with a Harrier pilot fishtailing toward a hover pad in Iwakuni, Japan when a yaw…
So There I WasRadar Inop Episode 184
Jedi’s back—and the brake-check lesson starts before the beers do. An F-4 slides into rainy Pensacola, our hero reports “good braking,” and a brick-built…
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Going to LZ-3 Episode 183
Allyn Hinton, Marine and Army aviator, joins So There I Was for a wild, first-person tour from low-level Huey recons over Da Nang to Blackhawks in Desert…
So There I WasFrom Box Canyons to Brotherhood Episode 182
Nose pointed at a rock wall, rescue specialist on the skid, rotor wash bouncing off granite, and then—power loss. Abort! Welcome to the world of helicopter…
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My Introduction to Arizona Talcum Episode 181
Helicopter search and rescue takes center stage as DPS pilot Darrell Detty walks us through hair-raising missions, near-misses and small-town chases that feel…
So There I WasI'm Here for My 45 Year Follow Up Episode 180
When a 21-year-old warrant officer thinks he’s bulletproof, fate (and a very determined round of enemy fire) impolitely disagrees. In this episode we ride…
So There I WasPorpoises, FOQA, and the Art of Not Looking Stupid Episode 179
Two Marines-turned-airline-pilots go full hangar-talk: first solo flight stories (equal parts terror and triumph), Harrier hover witchcraft, and why unstable…
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So There I Was Hangout Episode 178
Welcome to Hangout #2 of So There I Was—a gloriously unfiltered romp of Harrier stories and V-22 tales. Expect FAA side-eye and concussion-grade comedy. RePete…