About this episode
Before we introduce our next guest and episode we would like we would like to formally announce our newest Podcast sponsor Metro Aviation. We are extremely proud and humbled to partner with such a high caliber company that contributes so much to the aviation industry. This episode is dedicated to Officer Nick Villa from Huntington Beach PD Air Support Our guest for this episode is Daniel Flores who is a longtime Texas resident. He enlisted into the U.S. Army in February 1985, attending Basic and Infantry training at the U.S. Army’s, Home Of The Infantry at Ft. Benning Georgia. He served with the 4th Infantry Division based at Fort Carson Colorado. After his active duty enlistment he then returned to the Houston area and was accepted into the Texas Army National Guard’s Special Forces unit, Company G. 143rd Infantry LRRP (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol). While serving with that unit he did several missions along the Texas/Mexico border against the drug trafficking organizations and had also trained alongside the British SAS. In January 1990 Mr. Flores was accepted to the U.S. Army Warrant Officer Candidate and Helicopter flight school to become a pilot with the attack helicopter squadron, 7th Squadron 6th Cavalry Regiment, based in Conroe Texas. During his time as an attack helicopter pilot he survived a crash in the Apache helicopter in 1995. He did several missions along the Texas/Mexico border against the drug trafficking organizations, and was deployed to fight the war on Terrorism in 2006 in Afghanistan. During his one year tour he was tasked as the attack asset for the 10th Mountain division. He was witness to the resurgence of the Taliban and was involved in numerous gun battles and had his aircraft hit several times during those battles. One of those battles was featured on “The Military Channels” series “My War Diary” which told about an American convoy that he helped rescue from a Taliban ambush. He wrote a book that tells about his experiences, and was instrumental in the success of the movie "Apache Warrior" as a Co-Executive producer. The title of that book is “South of Heaven, My Year in Afghanistan.” From his book the multiple award winning film Above the Best was made. The film features actual footage taken from his helicopter in combat. He is the recipient of the "Air medal” and “Bronze star.” He retired from the Army, as a Chief Warrant Officer 4, after over 26 years of service. In 2020 he retired as a jet and helicopter pilot with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, as an Air Interdiction Agent. He flew numerous counter drug and terrorism missions throughout the U.S., Mexico the Caribbean and Colombia. He currently flies for Air Methods as an EMS pilot in the Houston area. During this episode, Daniel provides insight into the boarder issues we have in the US along the southern boarder. He talks about a crash he was in with the Apache and what it was like getting back into the saddle after the crash. He goes into detail on some of the battles he was a part of while in Afghanistan which you won’t want to miss. He also gives insight into his newest career as an EMS pilot. This episode definitely has something for everyone. Thanks for tuning in and please don’t forget to give us a like and a 5 star review on the Apple podcast app, It helps us out big time! I would like to take a minute to honor the life , contributions and sacrifices of Officer Nick Villa from Huntington Beach PD Air Support who tragically passed away after the aircraft he was in crashed in the water off of Newport Beach California, on February 19th, 2022. The pilot did an amazing job of putting the aircraft down without striking any people, boats or homes in a highly congested area. Metroaviation.co