Warriors In Their Own Words | First Person War Stories
The unsanitized truth of what we have asked of those who defend this nation. From archived tapes of WWI veterans, to conversations with modern-day warriors, these are their stories, in their own words.
Episodes
May 8, 2025 • 25 mins
Lieutenant Commander Mike Smith served in the Navy as an F/A-18 pilot. He deployed 3 times between 2002 and 2014, and was stationed in Japan, Italy, Virginia, Mississippi, Texas, and Florida.
He was also Strike/Fighter Pilot of the Year in 2009.
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May 1, 2025 • 34 mins
Lieutenant Colonel Neal Rickner served in the US Marine Corps as an F/A-18 pilot and a Forward Air Controller. He completed three tours in Iraq between 2003 and 2007.
As a Forward Air Controller (FAC), he toured with an infantry battalion, tasked with coordinating air support based on the needs of the battalion.
After coming back from deployment, Rickner served as an instructor pilot for the F/A-18.
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April 24, 2025 • 41 mins
Technician Fifth Grade Clement Elissondo served in World War II as a tank gunner. He deployed to France just days after the Invasion of Normandy, and survived the destruction of four of his tanks.
In this interview, Elissondo describes the difficulties of tank warfare, narrowly escaping enemy capture, and the camaraderie amongst a tank’s crew.
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April 17, 2025 • 43 mins
Captain Sidney Salomon served in World War II as an Army Ranger. The Rangers were an elite American unit that trained and operated with the famous British Commandos. Using the element of surprise as their main weapon, the Rangers played an important role in the Invasion of Normandy, the Dieppe Raid, and many other significant campaigns.
In this interview, Salomon describes his experiences on D-Day. He took part in the amphibious ...
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April 10, 2025 • 37 mins
Jim Beaver is an actor most widely known for his role as Bobby Singer in the TV series Supernatural. Before his acting career, Beaver served in Vietnam with the Marine Corps as a radio operator.
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April 3, 2025 • 41 mins
Mal Middlesworth served in World War II in the Marine Corps. He was 17 years old during the Attack on Pearl Harbor, serving on a Marine Detachment on the USS San Francisco.
In this interview, he describes what he saw during Pearl Harbor, the Guadalcanal Campaign, and the Battle of Peleliu.
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March 27, 2025 • 26 mins
Charles Sternburg served in the Navy in World War II with the Black Cats. The Black Cats were a group of bombers that flew stealth missions in the Pacific, tasked often with destroying enemy submarines or flying reconnaissance. They flew seaplanes called PBY Catalinas which were nearly invisible during the night, but were incredibly vulnerable to enemy munitions.
Sternburg flew as a co-pilot and bombardier with the Black Cats.
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March 20, 2025 • 44 mins
Lieutenant General Charles D. Luckey served in the Army as an infantry officer, special forces officer (Green Beret), and a JAG officer. He retired as the oldest Green Beret in uniform.
In this interview, Luckey tells stories from his service, and what he learned about leadership during his career.
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March 13, 2025 • 35 mins
Commander Jon Macaskill served in Afghanistan as a Navy SEAL. He graduated from the Naval Academy, and served in the SEAL teams from 2003 to 2020.
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March 6, 2025 • 45 mins
Samuel Fine served as a glider pilot in World War II. He trained British Glider pilots, and flew in with them during the Invasion of Sicily. Fine also flew troops into D-Day & Operation Market Garden.
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February 27, 2025 • 15 mins
Hi, I’m Ken Harbaugh, host of Warriors In Their Own Words. In order to gear up for some exciting new episodes, we’re taking a break this week. In the meantime, I wanted to share an episode from another podcast I think you’ll enjoy. Unsolved Histories explores forgotten mysteries and other little-known stories. The episode I’m sharing with you covers missing flight 293, where 101 people disappeared with no distress call. This multi-...
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February 20, 2025 • 34 mins
Major Robert Prince served as an Army Ranger during World War II. He fought throughout the Phillippines, and helped plan the Raid on Cabanatuan, a Japanese POW camp.
With the help of Filipino civilians, the Rangers, Alamo Scouts and guerilla forces traveled 24 miles under the cover of darkness to launch a surprise attack on the camp. They successfully defeated the Japanese and liberated over 500 prisoners of war.
Actor James Fr...
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February 13, 2025 • 34 mins
Corporal Roy Roush served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. He fought in the Guadalcanal Campaign, the Battle of Tarawa, the Battle of Saipan, and the Battle of Tinian.
He later served in the Air Force as a fighter pilot during the Korean War.
In this interview, Roush describes his experiences during the Battle of Saipan & the Battle of Tinian
To learn more about Roush, check out his book, Open Fire.
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February 6, 2025 • 31 mins
Corporal Roy Roush served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. He fought in the Guadalcanal Campaign, the Battle of Tarawa, the Battle of Saipan, and the Battle of Tinian.
He later served in the Air Force as a fighter pilot during the Korean War.
In this interview, Roush describes the Battle of Tarawa.
To learn more about Roush, check out his book, Open Fire.
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January 30, 2025 • 36 mins
Colonel Francis Gabreski served in World War II as a fighter pilot. He flew bomber escort missions with the 56th Fighter Group in the P-47 Thunderbolt, and was the top U.S. fighter ace in the European theater. He’s credited with destroying 34 ½ enemy aircraft in combat, and is one of only seven American pilots to become an ace in two wars (WWII & Korea).
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January 23, 2025 • 51 mins
Chief Petty Officer Otto Carl Schwarz Jr. served in the Navy in World War II. He was born in the Netherlands, but moved to the US with his family during childhood. He enlisted in the US Navy in January 1941 with the permission of his parents.
Schwarz served stints on several ships before making his way to the USS Houston, a heavy cruiser, in June 1941.
During the Battle of Sunda Strait in February 1942, the Houston was sunk by e...
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January 16, 2025 • 27 mins
Captain Tom “Bear” Wilson served in Vietnam as an Electronic Warfare Officer (EWO). He sat in the back seat of aircraft, and was responsible for monitoring radar in order to warn his pilot of threats, like surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), anti-aircraft artillery, and enemy aircraft. He also protected his aircraft by jamming enemy radar.
As a Wild Weasel, it was Wilson’s job to protect friendly aircraft attacking enemy SAM sites, w...
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January 9, 2025 • 26 mins
Staff Sergeant Sam Hargrove served in the Air Force for 11 years, working in combat communications. During her deployment in Iraq, Hargrove survived a base bombing. The attack left her with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and PTSD, but both went untreated.
When she returned home, Hargrove self-medicated with alcohol. Trauma and anger consumed her life until a drunken outburst caused her to punch a hole in a wall in front of her go...
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January 2, 2025 • 51 mins
Captain Lawrence Savadkin served as a computer data torpedo operator on the USS Tang, a submarine, during World War II. During a battle with enemy Japanese ships in October 1944, the Tang was struck by a torpedo and sunk. 78 men were killed.
Savadkin narrowly escaped the sinking sub with his life. He and the 8 other survivors were rescued and captured by the Japanese. He spent the rest of the war as a POW in the Toyko Bay Area.
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December 19, 2024 • 35 mins
Specialist Danielle Green served in Iraq with the Military Police Corps as a gunner. On May 25th, 2004, she was hit by a homemade RPG on a rooftop. She lost her left forearm and hand in the blast.
Prior to enlisting at the age of 25, Green played basketball at Notre Dame, and worked as a teacher.
In this interview, Green talks about her service, the blast, and what her physical/mental recovery has been like.
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