FPP169 - Helo's to Hornets to Headlines with "Chopper"

Fighter Pilot Podcast

E. Vincent "Jell-O" Aiello, Retired U.S. Navy Fighter Pilot

History, Personal Journals, Technology, Society & Culture, Government, Leisure, Aviation

4.9 • 2K Ratings

🗓️ 13 June 2023

⏱️ 131 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Retired U.S. Navy Captain Brett "Chopper" Crozier describes his career from flying SH-60B Seahawks to returning to flight school to learn the F/A-18 Hornet to nuclear power school and eventually command of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, including his very public firing at the beginning of COVID. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-fighter-pilot-podcast/donations

Transcript

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0:00.0	You know what's unique about being a captain of the ship is ultimately you are accountable for a lot at some point
0:04.4	We just weren't getting the traction that we wanted and that I wanted and meanwhile we're watching the exponential growth of the positive cases on the ship
0:11.2	And again, I said I'm ultimate accountable and there's every time for me to act now
0:30.0	Hello and welcome to the Fighter Pilot podcast. I'm your host Vincent Iolo and joining me today in the Circle Air Group Studios here at Gillespie Field in San Diego, California
0:42.0	is a gentleman who began his military career as a helicopter pilot but then transitioned to jets and later commanded an F-A-18 squadron as well as a nuclear powered aircraft carrier
0:52.4	Since retiring from the military as a Navy captain, he has continued to serve veterans and today he is the latest guest
0:59.8	on the Fighter Pilot podcast, Brett Kroger, Chopper, welcome to the show
1:03.9	Thanks, Joe, thanks for having me, I appreciate it
1:05.6	Welcome, I've been working on this one for a long time
1:07.6	Yeah, well you know what I didn't add to that intro just now is let's see two-time squadron mate, roommate I think on the O5 cruise
1:15.3	On the O5 cruise? Yeah, let's see, officiating officer at my retirement
1:19.6	He's true, he's just a good friend, yeah
1:23.6	Well you were like, yeah you were everything, you were like the only other guy up on the stage with me
1:28.2	And then we talked about 20 years ago this month, where were we?
1:32.2	20 years ago, five days ago, was our first mission over Iraq
1:37.2	And it was right after the statue fell and we were kind of the cleanup kids, but yeah
1:41.4	And that was my first combat flight at an F-A-18 after a transition which we can talk about
1:45.9	Yeah, absolutely, yeah, I'm glad I got to fly that with you
1:48.4	Well there's also something else that I think if listeners and viewers right now are like, Brett Kroger
1:52.9	Why does that name sound familiar? We're going to get to that because for a while you were a bit of a
1:57.3	media sensation, I don't know if I want to say darling, but you were a rest
2:04.1	So I think we're just going to pick this apart from the beginning
	...

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