Flying the F-111 nuclear bomber (193)

Aug 13, 2021

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Rick Shreve was a USAF F111 pilot based at RAF Lakenheath in the UK. We hear about his early USAF career as a fighter pilot, then we move onto his transfer to the F111 and how he was trained to carry out nuclear as well as conventional missions against the Warsaw Pact forces in Europe. He describes his low-level training missions to attack targets in the Soviet Union and East Germany and recalls a near-fatal incident amongst the Scottish lochs.

Rick was also part of one of the crews that flew on Operation El Dorado Canyon, the operation to bomb Libya in April 1986 in retaliation for the West Berlin discotheque bombing ten days earlier.

Rick gives you a frank view of his role in the USAF and his approach to the huge responsibilities he carried.

In his later career, he flew civil airliners with Pan-Am and recalls how he was astonished to fly over the Warsaw Pact airfield he had been tasked to attack in the event of war…

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0:00 Introduction and Rick Shreve's initial experiences in the Air Force

10:00 Rick's experiences with debriefing, training evaluations, and handling nukes

16:18 Rick's transfer to RAF Lakenheath and differences between flying an F 111 and the F4 Phantom

26:24 Noise complaints, rules for flying in different countries, and Rick's training in escape and evasion

37:27 Details of a nuclear mission and Rick's view on dropping a nuclear weapon

46:04 Operation El Dorado Canyon: The 1986 bombing of Libya

56:11 Role as the Nuclear Alert Force Commander at Lakenheath

1:00:33 Salty Nation: Preparing for operational readiness inspections

1:13:48 Rick Shreve discusses dangerous flying incidents and the mindset of military pilots

1:19:46 Rick Shreve's transition to Pan Am and his involvement in Desert Storm

1:24:13 Reminder for listeners to visit our Facebook discussion group

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