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The Afterburn Podcast

John "Rain" Waters
  • 4.9 (935)
  • Aviation
  • Updated Weekly

Strap in the cockpit as we dive into the stories of the men and women who defend the freedoms we love. From the cockpit of military jets to boots on the ground. The Afterburn Podcast dives into their stories, the planes, and the missions. For Advertising Opportunities or more information visit: https://theafterburnpodcast.com/

  1. Operation Midnight Hammer | Part 1: Before Iran, There Was Yemen

    2d ago

    Operation Midnight Hammer | Part 1: Before Iran, There Was Yemen

    This episode was designed for video. Watch this episode for text and graphical explanations: https://youtu.be/EDnLrP_45fk Operation Midnight Hammer through the eyes of the F-16 Wild Weasel pilots who flew it. This is the firsthand account of the 55th Fighter Squadron and the 20th Fighter Wing. These are the pilots who fly Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses, known as SEAD, the crews who went in first to suppress Iranian air defenses, and the ground support teams who made the mission possible.  Part One covers Operation Rough Rider, the air campaign over Yemen in the spring of 2025 that put these pilots into combat months before Iran. What they learned there is the reason they were ready for what came next. Recorded between December 2025 and January 2026, this series preserves the experiences of the people who were there, in their own words.  This is Part 1 of a 3-part series.  Commonly used Acronyms: https://www.lowdownnews.us/p/operation-midnight-hammer  The full one-on-one interview episodes are coming soon to  @afterburnpodcast  Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    14 min
  2. [Official Trailer] Inside Operation MIDNIGHT HAMMER | The F-16 Wild Weasels Who Flew Into Iran

    4d ago

    [Official Trailer] Inside Operation MIDNIGHT HAMMER | The F-16 Wild Weasels Who Flew Into Iran

    YT: https://youtu.be/rvVVQ3n081I This is the untold story of the F-16 pilots who flew deeper into Iran than any fourth-generation aircraft during Operation Midnight Hammer, the historic B-2 strike targeting Iran's nuclear sites with the Massive Ordnance Penetrator. These were the only non-stealth jets escorting the B-2 strike package, flying over 250 nautical miles into one of the most sophisticated integrated air defense networks on Earth, well beyond the range of any personnel recovery assets. These pilots provided Suppression of Enemy Air Defense (SEAD) coverage for the B-2's. When air refueling assets fell out before they even left Saudi airspace, these crews didn't abort. They improvised, redirected tankers, and executed refueling at speeds the F-16 had never done before in combat conditions. This is the first-person account from the pilots themselves. What they saw over Iran, what they were thinking at bingo fuel, and what it actually took to bring every aircraft home. Operation Midnight Hammer | F-16 SEAD | Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses | Iran nuclear strikes | Twelve Day War | 55th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron | AGM-88 HARM | Wild Weasel    Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    5 min
  3. Rob "ZMan" Zettel | Inside the USAF's Red Eagles

    May 29

    Rob "ZMan" Zettel | Inside the USAF's Red Eagles

    Rob "Z-Man" Zettel is a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, commercial airline captain, and author of American MiG Pilot who served as a top-secret Red Eagles instructor pilot flying Soviet MiG-21 and MiG-23 fighter jets during the Cold War program Constant Peg.   American MiG Pilot: Inside the Top Secret USAF “Red Eagles” MiG Squadron: https://amzn.to/4fLi2DA Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    1h 29m
  4. Raul Castro Indicted | Is Cuba the Next Venezuela?

    May 29

    Raul Castro Indicted | Is Cuba the Next Venezuela?

    On May 20th, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed a federal indictment charging former Cuban head of state Raul Castro with the murder of American civilians. That same day, the USS Nimitz carrier strike group entered the Caribbean. We break down the 1996 Brothers to the Rescue shootdown, the GAESA military conglomerate controlling Cuba's economy, and what the Venezuela playbook tells us about where this is headed. Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    10 min
  5. OA-1K Sky Raider II | Exclusive - How AFSOC's Newest Aircraft Is Built

    May 17

    OA-1K Sky Raider II | Exclusive - How AFSOC's Newest Aircraft Is Built

    Watch online: https://youtu.be/uvAyxlmpBdk We spent two days in Waco, Texas, inside the L3Harris facility where the Sky Raider II International™ is built. From the beginning, where an 802 Air Tractor enters the production line until it rolls out as Air Force Special Operations Command's newest airplane, the OA-1K Sky Raider II. We dive into what it takes to turn a crop duster into a precision-strike and ISR platform capable of operating from austere environments with only a two-man crew and 6,000 pounds of ordnance. Exclusive access to the production line, the weapons systems, and the people who build and fly it. Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    15 min
  6. China's Fifth-Generation Fighter Production Exploding | J-20 Production Surging

    May 15

    China's Fifth-Generation Fighter Production Exploding | J-20 Production Surging

    Video: https://youtu.be/L0D9c5nYO5E China's Chengdu Aircraft Corporation has more than doubled J-20 production efficiency using autonomous vehicles and AI-driven dark factories. With roughly 300 J-20s in service today and output estimated at 100-120 airframes annually, the PLAAF could field over 1,000 fifth-generation fighters by 2030. Today we discuss what that production capacity means, how it compares to F-35 output, and whether quantity changes the calculus regardless of quality. Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    9 min
  7. China Helped Pakistan in Combat | J-10CE's First Real War

    May 13

    China Helped Pakistan in Combat | J-10CE's First Real War

    Watch this episode on YT: https://youtu.be/8X_ll2FrRIA Beijing confirmed Chinese engineers were at Pakistani air bases supporting J-10CE operations during Operation Sindoor in May 2025. Today we discuss PL-15 & the J-10CE's combat performance data, what China just proved about its export hardware, and what the J-35 deal with Pakistan means now. Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    7 min
  8. Dos Gringos June 13th - Denver

    May 8

    Dos Gringos June 13th - Denver

    Dos Gringos Concert: dosgringosdenver.com James "Whacker" Reeman IG: @f16pilot Whacker's Content: Fastjetfriday.com Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off 🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫 🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺 Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast 🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    4 min
See All (348)

4.9
out of 5
935 Ratings

About

Strap in the cockpit as we dive into the stories of the men and women who defend the freedoms we love. From the cockpit of military jets to boots on the ground. The Afterburn Podcast dives into their stories, the planes, and the missions. For Advertising Opportunities or more information visit: https://theafterburnpodcast.com/

Information

  • Creator
    John "Rain" Waters
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    348
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © John "Rain" Waters
  • Show Website
    The Afterburn Podcast
  • Provider
    John Waters

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