The Merge

The Merge

Military technology, trends, and national security...presented with unique insights, salt, and wit from combat aviator veterans and industry experts. Fence in for interviews and anecdotes about the ins, outs, and happenings at the intersection of technology, industry, strategy, and policy of aerospace and national defense. Brought to you by The Merge newsletter.

Episodes

June 22, 2025 54 mins

In this episode, Mike and Jake catch up on defense techhappenings.

 

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00:36 intro

03:31 defense tech investing

17:25 Anduril & Golden Dome

18:13 Golden Dome

25:51 frequency auctioning

28:12 Ukraine forcing a US reckoning

34:27 DIU criticism

42:24 the 4th offset?

46:39 Sun Tzu terrain

47:45 the...

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Tomorrow’s fight will be fast, complex, and contested. Victory won’t come from a single platform, weapon, or payload—it will depend on how well everything works together.

That’s where modeling and simulation (M&S) matters.

This week, Raytheon (an RTX company) joins us to discuss how they are leading the way with Rapid Campaign Analysis and Demonstration Environment (RCADE), a campaign-level M&S capability built to help decis...

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April 27, 2025 38 mins

Don’t miss our newsletter!That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!


In this episode, Mike sits down with Sheila Cummings,founder, president, and CEO of Cummings Aerospace.


Cummings Aero started in 2009 supporting the Huntsville,Alabama missile market, but recently decided to launch their own product—the Hellhound.

The Hellhound S3 is a man-portable, 3D-printe,d jet-powered kamikaze dro...

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Joe “Grip” Beissner, Director of Requirements and Capabilities for Radio Frequency Solutions at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us to discuss the cutting-edge AESA radars Raytheon delivers for our warfighters.

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Jon "Stormin" Norman, Vice President of Requirements & Capabilities at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us to discuss the cutting-edge air-to-air and -surface weapons and effectors Raytheon delivers for our warfighters.

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Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!


In this episode, Mike sits down with Brett “Snappy”Abbamonte, a former Marine Corps F-35 pilot now at Advanced Strategic Insight (ASI) Inc.


Snappy is the program manager for ELITE (ExpendableLower-cost Integrated Training Emitter), a compact, cost-effective system designed to mimic high-end surface-to-air missile (SAM) threats.


D...

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January 17, 2025 80 mins

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That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!

In this episode, Mike interviews retired Air Force Colonel John Warden.

John is an Air Force pioneer who shaped how the modern world thinks about warfare—specifically the concepts of the operational level of war, parallel attack, and centers of gravity. He is most noted as the creator of Warden’s Five Rings and the architect o...

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December 22, 2024 42 mins

Check out our ⁠newsletter, where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!

In this episode, Mike interviews Chip Yates, founder of Yates Electrospace Corporation.

With a background in racing, Chip has made a name for himself by setting numerous world records as a pioneer in electric-powered motorcycles and airplanes. His journey took a strategic turn when he encountered a complex military challenge, leading ...

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November 26, 2024 38 mins

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Speaking of knowledge bombs, Mike hosts Ed Cobleigh to talk about Paveway: the laser-guided bomb.


Ed flew 375 combat missions during the Vietnam War in the F-4 Phantom and was one of the first people to drop the Paveway laser-guided bomb in combat. He earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses and went on to attend Fighter Weapons Sc...

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October 20, 2024 53 mins

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Mike hosts Col. Joseph Little, callsign “Little Joe,” to discuss how the US Air Force is modernizing the legendary B-52 BUFF to keep it flying into the 2050s—100 years after its first flight.


Col Little is a B-52 Weapons Systems Officer, a US Air Force Weapons School graduate, a former test squadron commander, and currently s...

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September 15, 2024 42 mins

Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!


Mike and Jake host Dan Magy, co-founder and CEO of Firestorm.


Firestorm’s mission is to democratize the air by re-imaging the way drones are built.


They developed a method to 3D-print modular drones at the point of need, using a combination of shipping-container-based factories and localized supply chains. Be...

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August 25, 2024 42 mins

Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!


Mike and Jake host Andrew Hunter, the US Air Force’s chief weapons buyer.


As the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (ATL), he oversees Air Force research, development and acquisition activities totaling an annual budget in excess of $60 billion for more than 550 acquisit...

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Mike hosts an exclusive episode to discuss the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program with the 2 companies selected to build the first platforms: Anduril and General Atomics.


We discuss what the companies have in common and how they both view that as one of their superpowers. We also explore the o...

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Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense!


Mike and Jake host Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar to talk about software-defined warfare, defense modernization, and all the things we’d change to drive innovation to help the warfighter.


Shyam started as employee #13 at 23 and slowly climbed the ranks of the largest and fastest-growing US defense software company.

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June 2, 2024 69 mins

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Mike hosts Andy Lowery to dig deep into directed energy weapons—specifically high-power microwave (HPM) systems.


Andy is the CEO of Epirus, a venture-backed defense tech startup inverting the cost equation of drone defense and swarm protection. We talk about the tech, how it affects electronics, and how Epirus’ flagship product—Leonidas—is designed with adaptability and scale in mind. Turns ou...

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Mike hosts Perry Boyle to dive into Ukraine’s rapidly developing defense industry.

Perry co-founded MITS Capital (Military Innovation Technology Solutions), a US venture that just established the first defense tech accelerator in Ukraine. MITS’ vision is to revolutionize Ukraine’s defense industry by investing in Ukrainian defense tech startups, nurturing and developing the ecosystem, and rapidly maturing...

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May 19, 2024 42 mins

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Mike and Jake host Captain John Konrad to talk all things Merchant Marine.

We talked about the Merchant Marine Academy, being a merchant mariner, and how they fit into national security.

What is the Military Sealift Command thing, and why does it keep confusing the counting of Navy ships? What is the Jones Act, and why is it so political?

The US has a ghost fleet of ships staged on both US coasts in cas...

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April 28, 2024 46 mins

Don’t miss our newsletter! Mike hosts Dr. Stacie Pettyjohn to discuss her new report:


Evolution Not Revolution, Drone Warfare in Russia’s 2022 Invasion of Ukraine


Stacie is a Senior Fellow and Director of the Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS). Her expertise includes defense strategy, posture, force planning, the defense budget, airpower, and wargaming. Her current projects focus on the eff...

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April 7, 2024 61 mins

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Former Australian diplomat John Fowler joins Mike Benitez to discuss what’s happening around the world through the lens of international relations.

John is a repeat guest—check out episode 16 to get caught up. In this episode, we discuss China, the South China Sea, the Taiwan elections, Russia in Ukraine, and even cautiously venture a bit into how US domestic politics is muddying the waters with Ukraine ...

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March 26, 2024 12 mins
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