Combat Story

A downed U.S. helicopter in Afghanistan. Forty-five knot crosswinds. No power margin.
In this episode of Combat Story, AJ Pasciuti sits down with Isaac G. Lee, a retired U.S. Marine Corps CH-53 heavy lift pilot with seven deployments and multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Isaac flew more than 140 named combat missions, became a Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI), commanded a Marine helicopter squadron, and led one of the most dangerous recovery missions of the war — lifting a downed Night Stalker aircraft near the Pakistani border with almost no margin for error.
We talk about:
Flying CH-53s during the Iraq invasion

Losing an engine in a hot landing zone

Brownout landings with zero visibility

Working alongside Army Apaches and special operations units

The surge years and nonstop named operations

The mental shift required to survive repeated combat deployments

The cost of leadership on families at home

This conversation goes beyond tactics.
It explores responsibility, identity, the "robot mode" many combat leaders adopt, and what happens when you finally step away from the machine.
Isaac shares the deeper story behind his memoir Hangar 4, a candid look at Marine Corps aviation, brotherhood inside Hangar 4, and the transition from warfighter to civilian leader.
If you care about Marine Corps aviation, CH-53 helicopters, Iraq and Afghanistan combat stories, or leadership under pressure, this episode delivers.
 
🎙 Guest: Isaac G. Lee
Isaac Lee is a retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. CH-53 pilot, Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI), and former squadron commander with seven deployments and multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He is the author of Hangar 4 and founder of Ready Room Consulting, where he teaches leadership drawn from two decades of Marine Corps aviation.
🔗 Connect with Isaac:
🌐 Websites https://isaacglee.com https://readyroomconsulting.com
📸 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/isaacgleewriter
📘 Facebook https://www.facebook.com/IsaacGLee
🐦 X (Twitter) https://x.com/isaacglee
🎵 Book Soundtrack Playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4x13aD07eDCCwF5TaSNyfT?si=mKzXXaHZTNCtyHss-MPTvA
 
🎙️ Host Information — AJ Pasciuti | Combat Story AJ Pasciuti is a retired Marine Force Recon Scout Sniper and Infantry Weapons Officer (Marine Gunner), author of Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life, and host of the Combat Story Podcast, where veterans share honest, unfiltered stories of service, leadership, and life after combat.
🔗 Find AJ Online:
📕 Book (Darkhorse): https://www.amazon.com/Darkhorse-Harnessing-Hidden-Potential-Life/dp/1400254973
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajpasciuti/
📘 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-pasciuti/
🔗 Website: https://www.ajpasciuti.com/
 
🎧 Featured Combat Story Episodes with AJ:
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 1 (USMC Sniper & Force Recon) - Battle of Fallujah | Shooting w/ Chris Kyle | American Sniper | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4QI-5sNeCs
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 2 (Sniper vs Sniper Battle) - Killing the Enemy's Most Lethal Sniper | Force Recon | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Ggly1TGAU
📺 Additional Features & Media 
👉 Urban Valor Podcast Feature: https://urbanvalor.com/episode/marine-snipers-eliminate-enemy-sniper-reclaim-stolen-us-sniper-rifle/
👉 DVIDS – Infantry Marine Course Feature: https://www.nationalguard.mil/Leadership/Joint-Staff/Comptroller/Innovation/?dvpTag=imc&videoid=790758

0321 Day is more than a date. It's a gut-check, a brotherhood check-in, and a reminder that no Recon Marine (and no Recon family) is ever alone.
In this Combat Story Special Edition, AJ Pasciuti sits down for a two-way conversation with Randall Parks (USMC, Ret.) the West Coast organizer of 0321 Day—to break down what the day means, why it's grown into a tradition, and how the Marine Reconnaissance Foundation (MRF) directly supports Recon Marines, enablers, SARCs, and, most importantly, Gold Star families.
You'll hear the story behind the event's partnership with Ballast Point Brewing, why the Recon community shows up so hard for each other, and how this annual fundraising push funds the Gold Star Family Retreat connected to the Recon Challenge at Camp Pendleton and a week-long retreat afterward.
And yes… Randall also ropes AJ (and Sarah) into the most Recon fundraiser ever: The "Recondo Hundo": 100 miles in 30 days (Feb 20 → Mar 21) to raise money for the MRF. Run it, walk it, bike it, swim it; get involved and bring someone with you.
Support the Marine Reconnaissance Foundation: MRF website: reconfoundation.org
Donate to the Recondo Hundo: support.reconfoundation.org/ajpasciuti
Signup to participate in the Recondo Hundo: support.reconfoundation.org/https-support-reconfoundation-org-2026-recondo-hundo
 
In this episode:
- What "03" and "0321" mean in the Marine Corps
- What the MRF (Marine Reconnaissance Foundation) does and why it matters
- Gold Star vs Blue Star families and why Recon keeps them close
- How 0321 Day grew from texts to a major event
- The Recon Challenge and carrying a fallen brother's name
- The "Recondo Hundo" fundraiser and how to participate
 
If you're a Recon Marine (or served with Recon): On March 21, reach out to somebody and say: "Hey brother, I'm thinking about you."
That simple message can land heavier than you realize.
 
West Coast Event details:
📍 Ballast Point – Little Italy (San Diego)
🕕 March 21 | 6:00 PM
A night of camaraderie, community, and fundraising for the MRF mission.
To attend you must RSVP: support.reconfoundation.org/https-support-reconfoundation-org-0321day-Ballast-Point
 
Subscribe for more Combat Story: real conversations with warriors from every frontline; what combat feels like, what it takes to endure, and how it shapes life after the arena.

Before the first bombs hit Iraq in 1991, seven B-52s quietly lifted off from Louisiana on a mission so classified most of the crews hadn't known it existed months earlier.
In this episode of Combat Story, AJ Pasciuti sits down with Trey Morris, retired U.S. Air Force Colonel and former B-52 Electronic Warfare Officer, to break down Operation Senior Surprise—nicknamed Secret Squirrel—the 35-hour, 14,000-mile strike that helped launch Operation Desert Storm.
This wasn't just another bombing mission. It was the first combat use of GPS-guided cruise missiles, the longest combat sortie in history at the time, and a zero-fail test of endurance and leadership.
Minutes after takeoff, Morris' aircraft lost an engine. They nearly collided during night aerial refueling. On the return leg, they ran dangerously low on fuel over the Mediterranean.
What followed was problem-solving under pressure, trust inside the cockpit, and a culture that demanded accountability when it mattered most.
Morris later captured the full story in his book Doom 34, but this conversation goes beyond aviation. It's about earning the right to come home—and honoring those who have "gone west."
If you're interested in B-52 bombers, Desert Storm history, military aviation, long-range strike, or leadership under stress, this episode is for you.
 
🎙️ Guest Information — Trey Morriss | DOOM 34 | Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel | Former B-52 Electronic Warfare Officer
🔗 Find Trey Online:
📕 Book: DOOM 34 (Available globally — search "DOOM 34") 🛒 Amazon:https://a.co/d/aR2IujP
📘 Personal Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trey.morriss/
📘 DOOM 34 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61581295749907
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/treymorriss/?hl=en
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/treymorriss/
 
🎙️ Host Information — AJ Pasciuti | Combat Story AJ Pasciuti is a retired Marine Force Recon Scout Sniper and Infantry Weapons Officer (Marine Gunner), author of Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life, and host of the Combat Story Podcast, where veterans share honest, unfiltered stories of service, leadership, and life after combat. 
🔗 Find AJ Online: 
📕 Book (Darkhorse): https://www.amazon.com/Darkhorse-Harnessing-Hidden-Potential-Life/dp/1400254973 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajpasciuti/
📘 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-pasciuti/
🔗 Website: https://www.ajpasciuti.com/
🎧 Featured Combat Story Episodes with AJ 
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 1 (USMC Sniper & Force Recon) - Battle of Fallujah | Shooting w/ Chris Kyle | American Sniper | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4QI-5sNeCs
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 2 (Sniper vs Sniper Battle) - Killing the Enemy's Most Lethal Sniper | Force Recon | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Ggly1TGAU
📺 Additional Features & Media 
👉 Urban Valor Podcast Feature: https://urbanvalor.com/episode/marine-snipers-eliminate-enemy-sniper-reclaim-stolen-us-sniper-rifle/
👉 DVIDS – Infantry Marine Course Feature: https://www.nationalguard.mil/Leadership/Joint-Staff/Comptroller/Innovation/?dvpTag=imc&videoid=790758
 
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In this episode of Combat Story, AJ Pasciuti sits down with Matt Cavanaugh, retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, combat veteran, strategist, endurance athlete, and living kidney donor, for a conversation about what service really looks like when nobody's watching.
Matt is the author of Best Scar Wins: How You Can Be More Than You Were Before, and his story goes far beyond combat. We start with his experiences in Iraq and the weight of leadership under pressure, then move into the harder-to-talk-about parts of life after war: grief, identity, responsibility, and the quiet choices that shape who we become.
Matt shares why he decided to become a non-directed living kidney donor, donating to a stranger and helping spark a chain that saved eight lives, including a fellow service member. Not long after surgery, he took on an endurance challenge called 1K4D (One Kidney, Four Deserts) — nearly 1,000 kilometers of self-supported racing across Namibia, Georgia, Chile, and Antarctica, including moments where the heat hit 131°F and the margin for error disappeared.
This episode isn't about highlight reels. It's about follow-through. It's about choosing discomfort for the sake of others, and what it takes to keep going when the "why" has to be bigger than you.
If you're interested in combat leadership, post-traumatic growth, endurance mindset, or service beyond the battlefield, this conversation will stick with you.
 
 
🎙️ Guest Information — Matt Cavanaugh | Best Scar Wins
Matt Cavanaugh, PhD, is a West Point graduate and retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel/Strategist who deployed to Iraq with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, earning two Bronze Stars and the Combat Action Badge. After the military, he became a living kidney donor who sparked an eight-life donor chain and has gone on to test his limits as an elite endurance athlete, including winning an ultramarathon across Antarctica.
🔗 Find Matt Online:
🐦 X (Twitter): https://x.com/mlcavanaugh
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mlcavanaugh1
📖 Book — Best Scar Wins: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Best-Scar-Wins/ML-Cavanaugh/9781637747742
🌐 Book Website: https://bestscarwins.com
🔗 Personal Website: https://mlcavanaugh.com
 
🎙️ Host Information — AJ Pasciuti | Combat Story | Darkhorse
AJ Pasciuti is a retired Marine Force Recon Scout Sniper and Infantry Weapons Officer (Marine Gunner), author of Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life, and host of the Combat Story Podcast, where veterans share honest, unfiltered stories of service, leadership, and life after combat.
 
🔗 Find AJ Online:
📕 Book (Darkhorse): https://www.amazon.com/Darkhorse-Harnessing-Hidden-Potential-Life/dp/1400254973
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajpasciuti/ 
📘 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-pasciuti/
🔗 Website: https://www.ajpasciuti.com/
 
🎧 Featured Combat Story Episodes with AJ
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 1 (USMC Sniper & Force Recon)
- Battle of Fallujah | Shooting w/ Chris Kyle | American Sniper | AJ Pasciuti 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4QI-5sNeCs 
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 2 (Sniper vs Sniper Battle)
- Killing the Enemy's Most Lethal Sniper | Force Recon | AJ Pasciuti 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Ggly1TGAU 
 
 
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In this episode of Combat Story, Joe Troutman takes us inside one of the most intense and least-documented firefights of the Iraq War — a 10-hour urban fight in Mosul where Blackhawk Company, 1-23 Infantry, held ground without air support, under sustained RPG, machine-gun, and IED attacks.
Joe served 18 years on active duty in the U.S. Army as a 13F Fire Support Specialist and Forward Observer, deploying multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan. From the early days after 9/11, through the birth of the Stryker Brigade, to the brutal street fighting that followed, Joe's story captures what combat actually looks like at ground level — confusion, exhaustion, courage, and decisions made under fire.
Much of this conversation centers on the events chronicled in Joe's book, Gods of War: The Legend of Blackhawk Company 1-23 Infantry, including:
- The first combat casualties in Stryker Brigade history
- A catastrophic vehicle rollover on Blackhawk Company's first patrol
- The August 4, 2004 Battle of Mosul, where insurgents launched a coordinated, city-wide ambush designed specifically to destroy Stryker forces
- Holding key terrain "at all costs" while outnumbered, undersupplied, and cut off
- Leadership, brotherhood, and survival when everything goes sideways
This episode isn't about politics or strategy on paper — it's about what it feels like to fight in an urban environment, to lose teammates before your first firefight, and to keep moving when fear, chaos, and responsibility collide. If you're interested in modern warfare, infantry leadership, combat decision-making, or true war stories told by the people who lived them, this is an episode you won't want to miss. 
 
🎙️ Guest Information — Joe Troutman | Gods of War: The Legend of Blackhawk Company 1-23 Infantry Joe Troutman, a U.S. Army combat veteran with 18 years of service and multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. He's the author of Gods of War: The Legend of Blackhawk Company 1-23 Infantry, a firsthand account of combat and brotherhood from the streets of Mosul.
📘 Facebook (Personal): @joetroutmanauthor
📖 Facebook (Book): @Godsofwarbco123
📸 Instagram: @joetroutman_author
🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joetroutmanauthor
🐦 X (Twitter): @JoeTroutman2
 
🎙️ Host Information — AJ Pasciuti | Combat Story AJ Pasciuti is a retired Marine Force Recon Scout Sniper and Infantry Weapons Officer (Marine Gunner), author of Darkhorse: Harnessing Hidden Potential in War and Life, and host of the Combat Story Podcast, where veterans share honest, unfiltered stories of service, leadership, and life after combat.
🔗 Find AJ Online:
📕 Book (Darkhorse): https://www.amazon.com/Darkhorse-Harnessing-Hidden-Potential-Life/dp/1400254973
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajpasciuti/
📘 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelo-pasciuti/
🔗 Website: https://www.ajpasciuti.com/
🎧 Featured Combat Story Episodes with AJ
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 1 (USMC Sniper & Force Recon) - Battle of Fallujah | Shooting w/ Chris Kyle | American Sniper | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4QI-5sNeCs
👉 Combat Story Podcast – Part 2 (Sniper vs Sniper Battle) - Killing the Enemy's Most Lethal Sniper | Force Recon | AJ Pasciuti https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Ggly1TGAU
 📺 Additional Features & Media 👉 Urban Valor Podcast Feature: https://urbanvalor.com/episode/marine-snipers-eliminate-enemy-sniper-reclaim-stolen-us-sniper-rifle/
👉 DVIDS – Infantry Marine Course Feature: https://www.nationalguard.mil/Leadership/Joint-Staff/Comptroller/Innovation/?dvpTag=imc&videoid=790758