A Pilot in Civilian Clothes: Lt Col Greg Wilson

A Pilot in Civilian Clothes: Lt Col Greg Wilson

Author: Evergreen Podcasts | The Honor Project October 24, 2024 Duration: 50:07
Lieutenant Colonel Greg Wilson served in Vietnam & Laos as a Forward Air Controller. As a Forward Air Controller, it was his job to coordinate airstrikes, and ensure that no friendly troops were hit. After less than six months in Vietnam, he joined the classified Steve Canyon Program (Project 404), also known as the Ravens.  Laos was technically neutral during the Vietnam war, and no foreign troops were supposed to be in the country. Nonetheless, the North Vietnamese continued to use Laos in order to import supplies via the Ho Chi Minh trail. Needing to stop the flow of enemy supplies, the USAF began secret airborne operations, targeting enemy vehicles, ground troops, and weapon systems.  The Raven program was eventually developed in order to better execute these operations. Raven pilots wore civilian clothes, and their job was to mark targets with smoke rockets, and direct air strikes onto them.  In this interview, Lt Col Wilson talks about his experience as a FAC and a Raven. He tells this story about first joining the Ravens: “So, I went out for a flight with one of the Ravens, Erik Erikson, and he was in the backseat…He gave me a set of coordinates. I said, ‘Well, there's got to be something. There's got to be a trick here, because this coordinate is right in the middle of a map. I don't have to piece them together.’ So, I flew to those coordinates, and he said, ‘What do you see down there?’ So, I looked down and I said, ‘Well, it looks like a crashed 0-1.’ He said, ‘You're right. What else do you see down there?’ I said, ‘Well, I can't be sure, but I'd say that it looks like skeletal remains.’ And he said, ‘You're right again. You're his replacement.’ So, that was kind of my wakeup call that they figured I was a rookie. And they also, wanted to let me know that this was the real game, that there was threat here. And that if you were shot down in this environment, you were not going to be captured, you were not going to be a POW, you were going to be a fatality.” Learn more about Wilson here. Check out the Documentary.tv YouTube Channel to see incredible stories like this combined with rare, authentic battlefield footage to create riveting film documentaries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a profound difference between reading about history and hearing it told by the person who lived it. Warriors In Their Own Words | First Person War Stories bridges that gap entirely, presenting an unbroken narrative of modern conflict through the voices of those who served. This isn't a commentary or an analysis; it's the raw, direct testimony that forms the bedrock of our understanding. The podcast draws from a remarkable archive, beginning with century-old recordings of veterans from the First World War and extending to contemporary conversations with service members from recent conflicts. Each episode is a standalone account, a deeply personal window into experiences that range from the trenches of France to the mountains of Afghanistan. You'll hear the subtle pauses, the inflections, and the emotion that text alone can never convey. Produced by Evergreen Podcasts in partnership with The Honor Project, the series is committed to preservation without polish, offering the unsanitized truth of military service. Listening feels less like studying an event and more like sitting across from someone as they share a pivotal part of their life. The cumulative effect is a powerful, human-centric tapestry of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, ensuring these essential perspectives are not lost to time.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Warriors In Their Own Words | First Person War Stories
Podcast Episodes
Stories From the Aid Tent: SGM Ben Hasley [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:19
Sergeant Major Ben Hasley served in Korea and Vietnam as a medic. In this interview he tells the stories of his service in combat and in the aid tent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Hostage Rescue in the Philippines: CPT Gene Yu [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:41
Captain Gene Yu is a West Point graduate and served in the U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets). He was initially kicked out of SERE school for breaking protocol and ordering pizza during a training exercise- a story…
The Battle of Makin: LtCol Howard Stidham [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:14
Lieutenant Colonel Howard Stidam served in World War II with the Marine Raiders, a special ops force that specialized in amphibious guerilla warfare. In this interview, he recounts The Battle of Makin, the Long Patrol in…
Class Anchorman to Commander: CDR Bobby Reshad Jones [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:30
Commander Bobby Reshad Jones served in the US Navy from 2001 to 2023. He attended the United State Naval Academy, where he played football, and graduated last in his class, making him the “Anchorman” per USNA tradition.…
The Fires of Pearl Harbor: MM2c Martin Shew [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:53
Machinist Mate 2nd Class Martin Shew served on the USS Arizona, a battleship that suffered insurmountable damage during the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Shew was on his way back to the Arizona when the attack began. Before he…
Fighting in the Solomon Islands: Capt Frank Guidone [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:10
Captain Frank Guidone served in World War II with the Marine Raiders, a special ops force that specialized in amphibious guerilla warfare. In this interview, he recounts his service in the Solomon islands, including the…
Escaping the USS Arizona: GM3 Donald Gay Stratton [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:24
Gunner’s Mate 3rd Class Petty Officer Donald Gay Stratton was on the USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor. He directed four 5-inch guns before an armor-piercing bomb hit the ship, sending up a 600 ft wall of fla…
SPOTLIGHT: Col. Gregory “Pappy” Boyington [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:34
Gregory “Pappy” Boyington was a legendary WWII fighter pilot. He is credited with destroying 28 Japanese aircraft, and he was awarded the Medal of Honor- but his legacy has been tainted by his abuse of alcohol and a hist…
Brothers in Arms Part III: SSgt Nick Bennett [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:30
Brothers in Arms is a special three-part series that tells the stories of SgtMaj Dan Miller and SSgt Nick Bennett, two Iraq War vets whose lives were forever changed by a deadly rocket attack. Today, in the final part of…
Brothers in Arms Part II: SgtMaj Dan Miller [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:01
Brothers in Arms is a special three-part series that tells the stories of SgtMaj Dan Miller and SSgt Nick Bennett, two Iraq War vets whose lives were forever changed by a deadly rocket attack. Today we’re sharing the sec…