ICYMI: The drone that almost killed bin Laden
Angry Planet29 Joulu 2016

ICYMI: The drone that almost killed bin Laden

Months before 9/11, U.S. Air Force captain Scott Swanson patrolled the skies over Afghanistan with a Predator drone. Swanson and his team were hunting Osama bin Laden. And they found him. But this was months before the new drones could fire missiles, and the pilots could only watch as bin Laden walked away. On Jan 23, 2001 – just three days into George W. Bush’s presidency – a Predator drone test fired a Hellfire missile for the first time. A new age of war had begun. Swanson is the first human to use a Predator-fired Hellfire missile to take a life. From a trailer truck in a garage behind CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, Swanson loosed a missile from a drone roughly 7,000 miles away in Kandahar. The missile struck its target – a pickup truck outside a building that intelligence said was hiding Taliban leader Mohammad Omar. The missile hit and killed two of Omar’s bodyguards. This week on War College, we replay our conversation with Swanson. He walks us through the early years of the drone program, how it changed him, and how it changed the world. (Corrects distance from Langley to Kandahar from 2,500 miles to 7,000 miles in fourth paragraph)

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/warcollege.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(497)

How to Count Nuclear Weapons

How to Count Nuclear Weapons

Listen to this episode commercial free at https://angryplanetpod.com/No one is really sure how many nuclear weapons are out there. Every number you see is a best guess. Russia and the U.S. have the mo...

12 Kesä 202459min

TEASER: Checking In On the Online Nazis With Jason Wilson

TEASER: Checking In On the Online Nazis With Jason Wilson

Sign up at angryplanetpod.com to get instant access to the full episode.A direct link to the episode on Substack.American politics was bizarre in 2016. Alt-right figures dominated many news cycles and...

6 Kesä 202413min

The FBI’s Chat App and the Biggest Sting Operation In History

The FBI’s Chat App and the Biggest Sting Operation In History

International criminal organizations are more concerned about message security than the average citizen. The end-to-end encryption of WhatsApp or Signal is great, but drug traffickers are looking for ...

5 Kesä 202453min

Ships: America Doesn't Build Them Like It Used To (Or at All)

Ships: America Doesn't Build Them Like It Used To (Or at All)

A lot goes into keeping a navy afloat. There’s ship husbanding, maintenance, and buckets of haze gray. The U.S. used to be good at this, but it hasn’t been on an active war-footing for a long time and...

30 Touko 20241h

TEASER: The Case for World War III Breaking Out This Summer

TEASER: The Case for World War III Breaking Out This Summer

Sign up at angryplanetpod.com to get instant access to the full episode.A direct link to the episode on Substack.The big picture in Europe doesn’t look good. Russia is moving to encircle key cities in...

22 Touko 202412min

The Horrors Behind Your Frozen Shrimp

The Horrors Behind Your Frozen Shrimp

Americans love shrimp. They love it so much they don’t think too hard about where it comes from—or the virtual slaves who are farming them. Joshua Farinella doesn’t have that luxury.A few years ago, F...

20 Touko 202448min

TEASER: Russian Murderers Who Go to War and Come Home to Kill Again

TEASER: Russian Murderers Who Go to War and Come Home to Kill Again

Sign up at angryplanetpod.com to get instant access to the full episode.A direct link to the episode on Substack.In Russia there’s a revolving door between prisons and the frontlines. What began as a ...

2 Touko 202411min

Americans in Ukraine Looking for ‘Daybreak’

Americans in Ukraine Looking for ‘Daybreak’

Luke Paxton and Han Lee know a good cause when they see one. When Russia invades Ukraine in 2022, the American vets know what they need to do. Their time in Afghanistan has given them the skills to he...

29 Huhti 20241h 1min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

uutiscast
aikalisa
politiikan-puskaradio
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
tervo-halme
rss-podme-livebox
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
rss-asiastudio
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
otetaan-yhdet
rss-hyvaa-huomenta-bryssel
rss-raha-talous-ja-politiikka
rss-sinivalkoinen-islam
the-ulkopolitist
rss-kaikki-uusiksi
rss-tasta-on-kyse-ivan-puopolo-verkkouutiset
aihe
rss-50100-podcast
rss-girls-finish-f1rst