Josh Richling has one of the best seats in competition STOL flying - he's the crew chief behind Steve Henry's Wild West Aircraft Highlander XL builds, the machine that's put up some of the shortest takeoff numbers in the sport. He's also the guy running Tundra Tailwheels day-to-day since Steve Henry took over the company from founder Jim Pekola in 2024, and on top of that, he freelances for FLYING Magazine covering the National STOL Series. So he builds the airplane, builds the gear, and writ...

Ray and Melisa Fowler run Adventure Flying LLC, a CubCrafters Certified Sales Center covering the mid-Atlantic — Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. Both are Delta A320 Captains, and both carry warbird résumés that go well beyond the airline job: Melisa is type-rated in the DC-3, C-47, and B-17, with stick time in the back seat of a P-51. Ray is a retired Air National Guard Lieutenant Colonel, an FAA Designated Pilot Examiner, and Director of Flig...

CC Pocock has spent over two decades flying in some of the most remote, unimproved terrain in the world, and now runs a one-man flight school in the Nevada desert that's trained more than 950 pilots. He's the author of Bush and Mountain Flying, now in its third edition, and just launched his own podcast and YouTube channel, Bush Air. We get into the real distinction between "bush flying" and "backcountry flying" — a line most pilots blur — and where CC thinks formal flight training falls shor...

Darin Hart runs American Legend Aircraft in Sulphur Springs, Texas — the shop keeping the Piper Cub lineage alive, from a stripped-down J3 to the Rotax 916-powered Nomad. We get into how the Nomad came to be (including the Trent Palmer connection that helped put it on the map), the story behind the name, and a full breakdown of the build-assist model versus buying a kit. We also dig into MOSAIC — what the new certification standard actually means for manufacturers, the scale of investment it ...

Erin and Paul flew their Bearhawk 5 named "Tina" to Peach State Aerodrome to drop in and record an episode! It was epic, and unfortunately I had to edit out the multiple fly-bys that interrupted the recording...haha. But in this episode we talk about getting into flying, building an airplane from scratch (proudly with Bearhawk's builder assist program), and flying it to all 50 states. This one was a lot of laughs and is a fun listen. Follow them on Instagram HERE Follow them...

Most people know Justin Meaders for the incredible story of returning to flight after the motorcycle accident that left him paraplegic. That story has been told well—including on Pilot to Pilot—so we took a different approach. In this episode, we focus on Justin the competitor: his years in Formula One air racing, his transition into the backcountry community and National STOL, the airplanes he's built and flown, and the mindset behind competing at a high level. If you've ever wondered what s...

Season 4 kicks off with a bit of a role reversal...in response to your comments I decided to do a "meet the host" episode" and instead of me just talking to myself, I invited Ryan Dembroski back to the podcast (only 3-time voice on the pod). Ryan takes a turn at the mic and asks me his toughest questions and we dive into my aviation story and what is coming next for the podcast. This was fun to record and I hope you enjoy listening to it! Welcome to season 4! JB on Instagram Sign-...

This episode follows up on Dave's recent YouTube video where he chronicles his crash in Hells Canyon last summer. I recommend starting with Dave's video, then returning here for the background story. We also talk about Spring plans into SUN'n FUN! If you haven't yet listened to Dave's previous episode I also recommend listening to the first go-around. Watch Part 1 of Dave's video HERE Thanks for listening to the podcast! This episode wraps up Season 3! More to come as I already h...

Jackie Burch has been a longtime supporter of the podcast and connected me with a lot of the guests I've interviewed. I finally convinced her to come on the podcast and talk about her aviation story and how she got started. This is a fun listen that explores new pilot fears and how she handled piloting a Taylorcraft to Alaska as a new tailwheel pilot. We also talk about her time with CubCrafters as their Programs and Events Manager and she talks about her love of the Cessna ...

This episode is with the voices of National STOL Cam and Ryan. We talk about what they've been up to since the last episode, the 2026 National STOL calendar, and then dive DEEP into eSTOL. You'll love this episode because the energy this group brings and the fun along the way. Get the light-up chart we discuss HERE Follow Ryan on Instagram and YouTube Follow Cam on Instagram Learn more about the National STOL Series HERE Sign-up for our newsletter, The Scout Report: HE...