{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The Pilot Project Podcast","title":"Fighters: The Red Knight Part 2: A Lifetime in the Cockpit – Darwin “Tex” Deagnon","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":4147,"description":"What happens when a jet's landing gear fails, and how do you know when it's finally time to hang up your flying helmet after a lifetime in aviation?\nIn Part 2 of our conversation with former Royal Canadian Air Force Red Knight Darwin “Tex” Deagnon, we follow his remarkable journey beyond the F-86 Sabre and the airshow circuit.\nTex takes us into the cockpit of the supersonic T-38 Talon, recounting a dramatic emergency landing with his nose gear stuck up, and reflects on instructing American pilots returning from the Vietnam War. We explore his leadership roles in the RCAF and the decision to retire from military service at just 40 years old.\nBut his flying career was far from over.\nFrom operating C-47 Dakotas in the Canadian Arctic and flying corporate aircraft around the world to navigating the mountains of British Columbia, working on the film *Alive*, and transitioning to the Airbus A320, Tex's career would eventually span 38 aircraft types and more than 24,000 flying hours.\nWe also hear about his extraordinary reunion with Harvard No. 334, an aircraft he first flew as a student in 1958, before reflecting on Remembrance Day, the people who shaped his life, and what nearly seven decades in aviation have taught him.\nCHAPTERS\n(00:00:00) Introduction, Welcome and Remembering Harry Tenkate\n(00:03:12) Training Instructors at Tyndall Air Force Base\n(00:04:07) The T-38 Talon and F-5 Freedom Fighter\n(00:05:30) The Psychological Impact of Combat in Vietnam\n(00:07:25) Flying the Supersonic T-38 Talon\n(00:09:00) Emergency Landing: Nose Gear Failure in the T-38\n(00:12:18) Preparing for an Emergency Landing\n(00:13:25) Why Tex Chose Not to Eject\n(00:14:57) T-38 Engine Failures and Close Calls\n(00:16:59) Flight Instructor Training in the United States and Canada\n(00:17:57) Vietnam and the Urgency of Pilot Training\n(00:18:36) Canadian Pilots Training with the USAF\n(00:19:02) Recruiting the Next Generation of RCAF Personnel\n(00:20:51) Commanding the Instrument Check Pilot School...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/WtK4-rQN7ZA9Wg3UwNskOTMoB0N7iBL9Y82iAbDH7e4/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8xNzI4/NTU0YmFmMzhkNmJm/ZTc4ODc4NGZiNGZl/MzMzNy5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}