Pull the Chocks, I'm Launching
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Pull the Chocks, I'm Launching
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Narrated by:
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Mike DelGaudio
About this listen
Pull the Chocks, I’m Launching is an inspirational metaphor for removing obstacles in your path to obtaining your dream.
In August 1967, I fulfilled my dream of becoming a fighter pilot when I was accepted into the 123rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron, the Redhawks, of the Oregon Air National Guard. That dream became indelibly ingrained in my psyche when on the morning of my first day in Anchorage, Alaska, during the Korean War, at the age of 12, I watched F-80 fighter jets make simulated gun strafing passes on a firefighter training tower at the city’s edge of the Cook Inlet. Circumstances in my life, from childhood to early adulthood, generated a host of highly unusual real-life stories, ranging from the humorous to the tragic.
Several of these were woven into the fabric of then-current events that made their mark in history. The numerous million-to-one circumstances in my "Huck Finn story on jet fuel" and the interesting people I came into contact with during this journey contributed significantly to the richness of those experiences.
©2022 Major General (Ret.) David E.B. (DEB) Ward (P)2022 Major General (Ret.) David E.B. (DEB) WardListeners also enjoyed...
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Warriors at 500 Knots
- Intense Stories of Valiant Crews Flying the Legendary F-4 Phantom II in the Vietnam Air War.
- By: Robert F Kirk
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 99
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 93
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Story4 out of 5 stars 90
As the ground war struggled for success in Vietnam, it became intensely clear that the skies had to be owned by the allies for victory to have a chance. It was the F-4 and its pilots that made that possible. The author, a Phantom pilot himself, details intense stories of undaunted and valiant American pilots with their legendary fierce Phantom. These are personal stories of intrepid courage and self-sacrifice to get the mission done - whatever the cost.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Material
- By Mark Murphy on 12-31-14
By: Robert F Kirk
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Come Up and Get Me
- An Autobiography of Colonel Joe Kittinger
- By: Joe Kittinger, Craig Ryan
- Narrated by: Christian Rummel
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 72
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 66
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
A few years after his release from a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp, in 1973, Colonel Joseph Kittinger retired from the Air Force. Restless and unchallenged, he turned to ballooning, a lifelong passion as well as a constant diversion for his imagination during his imprisonment. His primary goal was a solitary circumnavigation of the globe, and in its pursuit he set several ballooning distance records, including the first solo crossing of the Atlantic in 1984. But the aeronautical feats that first made him an American hero had occurred a quarter of a century earlier....
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4 out of 5 stars
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A rewarding read
- By Andrew Braddick on 03-25-13
By: Joe Kittinger, and others
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From F-4 Phantom to A-10 Warthog
- Memoirs of a Cold War Fighter Pilot
- By: Steven K Ladd
- Narrated by: Jeff Bolton
- Length: 12 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 131
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 115
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 116
You do not have to be an aviation aficionado to enjoy Colonel Steve Ladd’s fascinating personal tale, woven around his 28-year career as a fighter pilot. This extremely engaging account follows a young man from basic pilot training to senior command through the narratives that define a unique ethos. From the United States to Southeast Asia; Europe to the Middle East; linking the amusing and tongue-in-cheek to the deadly serious and poignant, this is the lifelong journey of a fighter pilot.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A 28 year history of Air Force fighter duty.
- By David H Milton on 07-09-22
By: Steven K Ladd
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Inside Marine One
- Four U.S. Presidents, One Proud Marine, and the World's Most Amazing Helicopter
- By: Lee Kelley, Ray L'Heureux
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 7 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 78
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 71
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 71
Inside Marine One is Colonel L'Heureux's inspiring story of a young man who dreamed of flying, trained, studied, and worked hard to become the pilot who ended up serving four US Presidents - George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. It's also a personal guided tour inside the world's most famous helicopter by a man who knows that flying machine better than any other. Inside Marine One is a great American success story of a young boy who dreamed big, worked hard, and finally flew the President of the United States as his number one passenger.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A great book
- By John A. on 01-05-23
By: Lee Kelley, and others
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Bomber Pilot: A Memoir of World War II
- By: Philip Ardery
- Narrated by: James Killavey
- Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 97
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 88
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 86
"The sky was full of dying airplanes" as American Liberator bombers struggled to return to North Africa after their daring low-level raid on the oil refineries of Ploesti. They lost 446 airmen and 53 planes, but Philip Ardery's plane came home. This pilot was to take part in many more raids on Hitler's Europe, including air cover for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. This vivid firsthand account records one man's experience of World War II air warfare.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating...and true story
- By Loretta on 06-24-15
By: Philip Ardery
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Double Ace
- The Life of Robert Lee Scott Jr., Pilot, Hero, and Teller of Tall Tales
- By: Robert Coram
- Narrated by: Barry Press
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 39
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
Robert Lee Scott was larger than life. A decorated Eagle Scout who barely graduated from high school, the young man from Macon, Georgia, with an oversize personality used dogged determination to achieve his childhood dream of becoming a famed fighter pilot. First capturing national attention during World War II, Scott, a West Point graduate, flew missions in China alongside the legendary "Flying Tigers", where his reckless courage and victories against the enemy made headlines.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Tiger Fan
- By Robert M. on 12-23-17
By: Robert Coram
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Fighter Pilot
- The Memoirs of Legendary Ace Robin Olds
- By: Robin Olds, Christina Olds, Ed Rasimus
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 17 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,075
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 2,615
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Story5 out of 5 stars 2,610
A larger-than-life hero with a towering personality, Robin Olds was a graduate of West Point and an inductee in the National College Football Hall of Fame for his All-American performance for Army. In World War II, Olds quickly became a top fighter pilot and squadron commander by the age of 22—a double ace with twelve aerial victories. But it was in Vietnam where the man became a legend.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Top Notch Audiobook
- By R. A. Frank on 10-08-10
By: Robin Olds, and others
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Within Arm's Length
- A Secret Service Agent's Definitive Inside Account of Protecting the President
- By: Dan Emmett
- Narrated by: Kevin Foley
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 189
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 171
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 173
Dan Emmett was just eight years old when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The events surrounding the president's death shaped the course of young Emmett's life as he set a goal of becoming a U.S. Secret Service agent-one of a special group of people willing to trade their lives for that of the president, if necessary. Within Arm's Length is a revealing and compelling inside look at the Secret Service and the elite Presidential Protective Division (PPD).
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3 out of 5 stars
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Obviously a dedicated patriot
- By Nick L on 11-19-14
By: Dan Emmett
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Hero Found
- The Greatest POW Escape of the Vietnam War
- By: Bruce Henderson
- Narrated by: Todd McLaren
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 352
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 262
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 262
In February 1966, U.S. Navy pilot Dieter Dengler was shot down over "neutral Laos". He crashed deep in territory controlled by North Vietnamese army regulars and the communist Pathet Lao, who would eventually capture him and hold him prisoner in a fortified jungle prisoner-of-war camp.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Extremely interesting and well-written!
- By Matthew on 08-28-10
By: Bruce Henderson
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Once They Were Eagles
- The Men of the Black Sheep Squadron
- By: Frank Walton
- Narrated by: David Randall Hunter
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 81
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 76
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 75
Marine Corps Fighter Squadron 214 was hastily organized in the field during World War II to meet the urgent need for another combat squadron in the South Pacific. The squadron, self-named the "Black Sheep", went on under the leadership of the swashbuckling "Pappy" Boyington to become the most famous in Marine Corps history. Now comes the true story of the Black Sheep Squadron and the men who wrote its record in the Pacific skies.
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5 out of 5 stars
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great insight at the leyendary squadron
- By Ernesto morales on 04-28-18
By: Frank Walton
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The Wild Blue
- The Men and Boys Who Flew the B-24s Over Germany
- By: Stephen E. Ambrose
- Narrated by: Jeffrey DeMunn
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 877
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 780
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 780
The very young men who flew the B24s over Germany in World War II against terrible odds were an exemplary band of brothers. In The Wild Blue, Stephen Ambrose recounts their extraordinary brand of heroism, skill, daring, and comradeship. Stephen Ambrose describes how the Army Air Forces recruited, trained, and chose those few who would undertake the most demanding and dangerous jobs in the war.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Required Reading
- By Lyle on 11-22-11
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Mission
- Jimmy Stewart and the Fight for Europe
- By: Robert Matzen, Leonard Maltin - foreward
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 614
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 565
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 564
In March 1941 Jimmy Stewart, America's boy next door and recent Academy Award winner, left fame and fortune behind and joined the United States Army Air Corps to fulfill his family mission and serve his country. He rose from private to colonel and participated in 20 often-brutal World War II combat missions over Germany and France. In mere months the war took away his boyish looks as he faced near-death experiences and the loss of men under his command. The war finally won, he returned home with millions of other veterans to face an uncertain future.
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1 out of 5 stars
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SKIP THIS ONE
- By G-Man on 05-13-18
By: Robert Matzen, and others
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The Vietnam Air War
- From the Cockpit
- By: Colonel Dennis M. "Mike" Ridnouer
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 146
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 129
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Story5 out of 5 stars 126
The Vietnam War is one of the most misunderstood military conflicts in 20th-century America. Showcasing 72 true stories told by American servicemen who fought from the skies, this unique and historically significant collection is a stunning record of the air war in Southeast Asia during the 1960s and 1970s.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Overall worthy and perspective broadening
- By Clayton Cartier on 11-03-20
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Skybreak
- The 58th Fighter Squadron in Desert Storm
- By: Mike Guardia
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 5 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
August 1990: Iraqi forces under the command of Saddam Hussein invaded the tiny emirate of Kuwait. In response, the US military led a coalition of thirty-four nations in what became known as Operation Desert Storm—a violent air and ground campaign to eject the Iraqis from Kuwait. At the tip of the spear were the men of the US Air Force’s 58th Fighter Squadron. Based on hours of interviews and archival research by author Mike Guardia, this book reveals an intimate, no-holds-barred account of modern aerial combat…as told by the men who lived it.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Desert Storm Fighter Action
- By David T. Gato on 07-23-24
By: Mike Guardia
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Sully
- My Search for What Really Matters
- By: Chesley B. Sullenberger, Jeffrey Zaslow
- Narrated by: Michael McConnohie, Chesley B. Sullenberger
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 779
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 710
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 707
On January 15, 2009, the world witnessed a remarkable emergency landing when Captain "Sully" Sullenberger skillfully glided US Airways flight 1549 onto the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 passengers and crew. His cool actions not only averted tragedy but made him a hero and an inspiration worldwide. His story is now a major motion picture from director/producer Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks, Laura Linney, and Aaron Eckhart.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Really Dull.
- By Nick on 09-14-16
By: Chesley B. Sullenberger, and others
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Vulcan Boys
- From the Cold War to the Falklands: True Tales of the Iconic Delta V Bomber
- By: Tony Blackman
- Narrated by: Roger Davis
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
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Story4 out of 5 stars 39
The Vulcan, the second of the three V bombers built to guard the UK during the Cold War, has become an aviation icon like the Spitfire, its delta shape instantly recognizable, as is the howling noise it makes when the engines are opened for takeoff. Vulcan Boys is the first Vulcan book recounted completely firsthand by the operators themselves.
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4 out of 5 stars
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a compelling work but slow to start
- By Josh Boyle on 08-06-16
By: Tony Blackman
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35 Miles from Shore
- The Ditching and Rescue of ALM Flight 980
- By: Emilio Corsetti III
- Narrated by: Fred Filbrich
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 107
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 94
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 93
On May 2, 1970, a DC-9 jet with 57 passengers and a crew of six departed from New York's JFK International Airport en route to the tropical island of St. Maarten, but four hours and 34 minutes later, the flight ended in the shark-infested waters of the Caribbean. It was, and remains, the only open-water ditching of a commercial jet. The subsequent rescue of survivors took nearly three hours and involved the coast guard, navy, and marines.
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5 out of 5 stars
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a new perspective on air travel
- By Midwestbonsai on 03-30-17
What listeners say about Pull the Chocks, I'm Launching
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- JBoyle
- 11-26-23
A great read for airmen
I really enjoyed the military stories and the training process. I’d like a post script chapter covering medical school and flight surgeon experiences.
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