As a former Acting Ensign of Topgun thanks to the Make A Wish Foundation back in 1992, I couldn't wait to get my hands on Mr Elwards book. I've lived and breathed everything there is to know about the school, as well as the movie (the two go hand in hand). My visits to the school at Miramar in 92, 94 and 96 changed me at a point in my life when it was debatable as to whether I would live to see my 10th birthday. I reached out to Tom "Pager" Page in one of your previous interviews who had a hand in my initial 1992 visit. My visit proved to me that you don't have to be in the military for military person or military group to make such an influence on someone's life. My life wouldn't be what it is today if Pager and the Topgun Bro's hadn't taught me that life is worth fighting for and install the drive in me to succeed and make the best of every opportunity that presents itself. This interview with Brad was worth waiting for as to his approach to the books process. Thanks Jell-o!

Jello, thank you so much for your dedication and devotion to fill the needs of those of us who love to hear about anything and everything military aviation. I can't even begin to imagine the amount of work and effort that it must take by you and your team to keep such a high quality in your podcast along with keeping it consistently rolling out on schedule. I appreciate that you and your team are not only dedicated to the aviation aspect of the show but also your drive to let the listeners hear the people you have as guests share their story. As you always say you explore "the aircrafts, the weapons systems-- and MOST IMPORTANTLY-- the people" and episodes like this are a testament to that mission statement. We all love the aircrafts and of course most of us love TopGun; but episodes like this allow us to delve deeper into the world that surrounds military aviation as a whole. Whether it be an episode about AI and how it pertains to military aircraft or an episode with great men like Crawford Hicks and his amazing experiences and then Brian Shul who praised those at skunkworks who were able to create something amazing that he got to experience firsthand. Those things are just as, if not more important, than the fact that the SR-71 may have went fast, flew high, and was an asset to its country for such a long time. The Blackbird would have been nothing more than a really advanced technological achievement that sat on a runway and rusted without the men who sat in it to utilize it to its potential. You guys help get their stories out. So again thank you from the bottom of my heart for episode's that focus on the people who have accomplished just as much as the aircrafts. You and your team are providing us aviation fans a great service through this podcast, so I just wanted to give you an encouragement and hopefully an affirmation for some peace of mind. God bless you, your family, your fellow hosts, and the rest of your team at large. Keep up the amazing work and Godspeed. 🎖🪖🙏👏 Edit: I'm aware that titanium is very resistant to rust and corrosion but hopefully everyone can understand what I was trying to get across haha.

Excellent addition. Looking forward to Part Deux!

I read Dan Pedersen's book on the founding of TopGun. It's a great book, loved reading his Naval Career and how he and the original bros founded the school, etc. I'll also check out Mr Elward's book as well

Absolutely looking forward to this month's episodes and seeing the movie at the end of the month!

As someone who is going to Law School to become a lawyer, and yet is very interested in military aviation (6'6 tootall to be a pilot and ADHD). It was great to see Mr. Edward as a guest and that hopefully one day I can write a book about similar subject matter one day.

Thank you so much for these podcasts Jell-O! I'm applying for RMC next year (Royal Military College) to complete an engineering degree. Your podcasts have kept me interested in aviation (specifically military aviation) and keep me inspired to become a fighter pilot! Much love from Canada 🇨🇦 ❤️

Thank you.

That nostalgia. This marks the beginning of my birthday celebrations. The best since 1986.😎🤘 .... Maverick since 11/05/1986.

Book ordered.

I feel the need....

Awesome episode and don't knock that Rogan style. It worked for him.

Dude!! Would love to find that music intro on Spotify. Can you guys do something to put it there

Is there any reason that Jellio's intro name is without rank? Thx

With congress holding UAP hearings this month why doesnt the TacAir Community question if ET has Global Air Dominance?

Good morning! I have just found your KZfaq channel and now through that, I have discovered your podcast! Absolutely love them! Bravo Zulu! The quality of them both and the hard work that has gone into them has made an outstanding product. How I found them was looking for various reviews and comments on Top Gun: Maverick and the first video that I watched was the one where you had the Bro panel discussing and fielding questions after having seen the movie. I am coming up on retirement soon and looking at all of the videos' and podcasts that you have done, I have a lot to catch up on! I purchased Mr. Elward's book two weeks ago and I am loving it! I'm up to the '80's chapter now and am relishing every moment reading the book when I have the down time to do so. Though I am not an Officer nor a pilot, I am former NAVY (1985-1990, MM3/USS NIMITZ (CVN-68)/Engineering Dept./Auxiliaries Div. "A-Gang"/EA01 shop - Aircraft Elevator Hydraulics) and now work for a company who has an Aviation Component. I'm an "electro optical/thermal imagery sensor operator"; the senior operator for my division, an instructor, and the Aviation Safety Officer. Basically a NFO TARPS operator who teaches the system and serves collateral duty as an ASO. Again, Bravo Zulu on your work! Stay safe & Check 6, George Callsign "Sailor"

One of the biggest premises that isn’t supported by the statistical data is that the USAF did poorly, failed to adapt, while the Navy made the massive change with TOPGUN and reigned supreme. There’s an excellent article on this that breaks it down by the types of aircraft being counted, what years, and what methods for early warning were being used. If you count all of the USAF aircraft shot down in A2A, you get 3.8:1 kill ratio. That includes F-105Ds, B-52Ds, RF-101C, F-102A, EB-66C, UAVs, etc., not fighter vs fighter only. For USN, counting all aircraft, it was 4.7: 1 ratio. That includes A-7B, F-8C/D/E, RF-8A, A-4C, A-1 Skyraiders, A-6A, etc. USAF MIGCAP fighters was 5.5:1 USAF MIGCAP fighters cued with Teaball Early Warning Network: 15:1 USN MIGCAP fighters: 6.4:1 USN MIGCAP fighters post-TOPGUN: 8.7:1 USAF kill count was also dramatically greater than USN due to numbers and sorties, plus all the high altitude fights executed by the F-4C/D/E community, whereas USN flew mostly a lower altitude band flight profile. This is also why you see such a significant difference in weapon types employed by each service. AIM-7E employment was much greater in USAF, whereas AIM-9 was the primary weapon used in USN.

So far this interview has been about the book writing process and the chronology of how this book was written. I came here to listen to an interview about Topgun School. I am beyond bored listening to a podcast about how a book was written. The author doesn't understand that this is NOT an interview about HIM rather it was supposed to be about the content in his book. Sorry Jello I tried man. I had to turn it off after you asked him what was the need for Topgun and his answer started with: "what *I* wanted to do...."

Didn't Crusader College form the template for TOPGUN’s syllabus? I’ve read some detailed descriptions of the initial course, as well as a description of the syllabus from early F-14A graduates/instructors, and they were almost the same as far as the course POI. Another surprising thing for me was how Crusader College had a BVR focus, with 68% of the course dedicated to that aspect of managing the fight. It was totally in contrast to the mantra of “The Last Gunfighter”. BFM/ACM wasn’t even the 2nd focus if I recall, but PID and recognition skills of threat aircraft.