Frankentanker Episode 188
from So There I Was
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 paperwork migraine. From “switches up, auto missile, eat a sandwich” bomb runs to 24-hour missions fueled by go-pills, honey buckets, and a hacked-together cot, he walks us through life in a jet built for nuclear armageddon but terrible at simple IFR. Then we follow him to test pilot school at Edwards, where he flies everything from F-16s to flying boats, helps beat up the “Franken-tanker” KC-46, and explains how big airliners survive stalls, rejected takeoffs, and absurd crosswinds. Sparky also tells the sobering story of losing a classmate in a T-38 crash—and the piano-burning tradition that followed—before closing with the truly unbelievable tale of how Wayne Newton kissing his wife on stage earned him his call sign. Burning a Piano B-2 School Mates Last TPS Flight Using the Good Part of the Runway While Craters Get Fixed
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