Episode 281 - 5th Anniversary Special: Celebrating with Fighter Pilot Podcast Host Vincent "Jell-O" Aiello Part 2

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS , in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine . Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter! This special two-part series is five years in the making, due to the fact we are celebrating the fifth anniversary of The Hangar Z Podcast. Hosts Jon Gray and Jack Schonely reflect on the journey of the podcast, its impact on the aviation community, and the inspiration drawn from guests like Jell-O, the host of The Fighter Pilot Podcast. Each year, a special guest is selected to help celebrate the anniversary of The Hangar Z Podcast. A guest is sought after that has uniquely shaped the public safety aviation community or directly inspired the creation or direction of The Hangar Z Podcast. Today’s guest directly inspired the creation of The Hangar Z Podcast, as The Fighter Pilot Podcast was the first aviation podcast that the creator of the Hangar Z listened to and enjoyed. Today, The Hangar Z Podcast welcomes an accomplished naval aviator with over 8,964 days of active duty, 3,807 flight hours, and 705 carrier landings—263 at night. His combat missions include 78 flights over Iraq, 25 countries across four continents, and 187 days in Afghanistan. He’s experienced 12 moves, participated in three carrier deployments with no ejections, shoot downs, or D.C. tours. His career is filled with remarkable memories. Please join us in welcoming Vincent Aiello to The Hangar Z Podcast! Thank you to our sponsors CNC Technology , Metro Aviation and SHOTOVER .