On his 75th mission, just five days before the end of his tour, he was shot down over Hanoi, taken prisoner, tortured, and spent the next 2,103 days in an 8-by-8 foot cell as a Prisoner Of War.

In our conversation, we talk about the challenges of turning an idea into reality, the similarities between medicine and aviation, and how to live a longer healthier life.

My guest today is Major General (Ret.) Brett Williams. He is a command pilot with over 3,700 hours and 100 combat missions in the F-15C Eagle. He was also the Commander for the Air Force's largest combat wing.

My guest today is Dr. Meenakshi Wadhwa, a planetary scientist and currently the Director of the School of Earth and Space Exploration at ASU. She is a cosmic CSI detective investigating the origins of our solar system, primarily through meteorites.

Scott Parazynski has traveled 23 million miles over 5 missions to space, including 7 spacewalks. He was inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2016 and is the only person to both fly into space and summit Mount Everest.

My guest today is Jim Abbott, a pitcher who played for 10 seasons in the Major Leagues. Despite being born with only one hand, he won the James Sullivan Award as the nation's best amateur athlete and then went on to win a gold medal in the Summer Olympics.

My guest today is Roy Bahat who is the head of Bloomberg Beta, an investment firm with over 150 million dollars under management. He invests in the future of work with a focus on machine intelligence and automation.

In our conversation we talk about what it's like to be on the phone with a terrorist, the traits required of a hostage negotiator, how everyone can become better at negotiating, and more.

My guest today is Tyson Weihs, the Co-Founder and CEO of ForeFlight--by far the best aviation software ever produced.

My guest today is Matt Hall, Australia's top aviator. For the last 10 years, he has been flying at the pinnacle of aviation racing--The Red Bull Air Race series.

My guest today is a genius that is changing the paradigm of the world we live in. He is the Co-Founder of Siri, the digital assistant that's in every Apple device.

My guest today is Brig. General (retired) Pete Palmer. He served for 32 years in the Army in various infantry assignments. His joint and coalition experience include four tours in NATO as well as Kosovo and Iraq.

Two things stood out to me about Andy--his engineering expertise and his passion for understanding the mental side of peak performance. His engineering background is evident as he discusses how he and his team gain an incremental advantage with each modification to their plane. It's was also fascinating to hear how he trains mentally to perform his best on race day.

I was impressed with how Patrick was able to explain the nuances of what he does to someone outside the industry like myself. He is humble and knowledgeable which makes him a great teacher. In this episode we talk about how robots are similar to the plow-horse from the early 20th century, how Tesla automated their factory too much leading to disastrous results, computer vision, A.I., what he looks for in new-hires, and his No Jerks policy.

Valerie Plame is one of America's most famous CIA officers. Her life was the subject of the 2010 movie Fair Game staring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn.

Lt. Col. John "Brick" Caldwell is the Commander and Leader of the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. I had never met "Brick" before this interview, but several pilots I've flow with have a tremendous amount of respect for him. After our conversation, I do now as well.

This is not a typical episode, but I felt it was worth sharing. It's a speech I gave for Memorial Day. The audio quality is not great, but it's meaningful to me. If I can use this podcast and platform to help keep the memory of the fallen alive, then it will have all been worth it.

Jeff Nielsen, also known as “Capt. Jeff” is the host of the very successful "Airline Pilot Guy" Podcast. He has the calm demeanor and soothing voice you'd expect from a senior airline pilot. He has a wide breath of aviation knowledge and is the subject matter expert on being an airline pilot.

Felicity Aston is a British Polar Explorer living in Reykjavik, Iceland. In 2012 she became the first person in the world to ski alone across Antarctica using just muscle power.

Chad Hennings is is a three time NFL Super Bowl Champion with the Dallas Cowboys, a former A-10 fighter pilot, an author, a speaker and an entrepreneur.

His writing can be found on a number of websites; most notably FighterSweep.com, where Hollings serves as editor, TheNEWSREP.com, where Hollings serves as a Senior Staff Writer, and Popular Mechanics.

Terry Virts is a U.S. Air Force test / fighter pilot and a NASA veteran of two spaceflights – a two-week mission onboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 2010 and a 200-day flight to the Space Station in 2015. He is a leader, speaker, and author who is currently working on multiple projects, including a new book and television series.

Michele Rigby Assad is a former undercover officer in the National Clandestine Service of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.

In this episode we talk about his advice to a new fighter pilot, what it feels like to land on a carrier at night, his favorite aircraft to fly, his views on leadership, and more.

Minute 47:00 of this episode has a story that nearly brought a tear to my eye. Having been deployed to combat, I've seen the incredible team effort to save lives that he talks about. It's truly awe inspiring to see the military men and women, most under 30 years old, come together and sacrifice so that others may live.