Ep 454: OPERATION RED WINGS: Rescuing Marcus Luttrell (Part 1)

Welcome to the most line-stepping, career-defying, rule-dodging episode in Ones Ready history. We’re joined by none other than Jonathan Harmon—PJ-turned-CRO, Operation Red Wings rescue mastermind, tactical genius, and part-time aircraft hijacker (allegedly). From failing swim tests and skydiving with squirrels in Florida, to running the Combined Air Operations Center during Operation Red Wings, Harmon proves one thing: you don’t need a six-pack or clearance to change the entire course of a war—you just need audacity and a spreadsheet. We’re talking real-deal combat rescue, bootstrapping squadrons from zero gear, calling out toxic “quiet professional” culture, and the exact moment where someone looked him in the eye and said: “You’re not Adonis. Get out of my team room.” Strap in. This is not a SEAL movie. It’s the story of the actual dudes who saved lives, built the system, and then had to figure out how to buy drywall to build their own squadron walls. 🔥 Key Takeaways: 💥 "Quiet Professional" ≠ Silent Professional – Your silence isn't noble. It's just unhelpful. 💥 Built Different (Literally) – The man built a squadron from a paint bucket and a dream. 💥 Red Wings – Harmon saw the blip, did the math, got ignored... then changed the op. 💥 Hijacked a C-17 – “Not arrested—detained.” Sure, bro. 💥 Enlisted First, Officer Second – Pro tip: know the job before you try leading it. 💥 PJ Team Room Energy – Flannel. Divorce. Granola. Tattoos. 💥 From Tactical to Strategic – A PJ saves a life. A Crow changes the game. 💥 Respect Is Earned – Even in jammies, Marcus Luttrell got nearly drawn down on. 💥 We ARE the Old Guys Now – So start talking before your story dies with you. ✅ Like this episode if drywall and duct tape built your first team room. 💬 Comment if you’ve ever stepped over the line… and stayed there. ⭐ Leave a review, even if it’s just to ask why we haven’t made a movie about this yet. 🛒 Grab your merch and join the crew at OnesReady.com 🎙️ Apply for our membership before we turn it into a pyramid scheme. (Kidding. Kinda.) Join this channel to get access to perks:    / @onesready   Collabs: Ones Ready Merch: onesready.com 18A Fitness - Code: 1Ready (18afitness.com) ATAC Fitness - Follow the URL: https://shorturl.at/D8tNM CardoMax - Code: ONESREADY (cardomax.com) Danger Close Apparel - Code: ONESREADY (dangercloseapparel.com) DFND Apparel - Code: ONESREADY (DFNDUSA.com) Hoist - Code: ONESREADY (drinkhoist.com) Kill Cliff - Code: PODCASTKC20 (killcliff.com) S4FE-D - Code: ONESREADY (s4fe-d.com) Modern Athlete Strength Systems: Warfighter: ($49/month) https://marketplace.trainheroic.com/w... Warfighter Elite: ($199/month) https://marketplace.trainheroic.com/w... The views and opinions expressed by the OnesReady team and all guests are those of the team and themselves, and do not reflect the official policy or position of the DoD. Any content provided by our Podcast guests, bloggers, sponsors, or authors is their opinion and is not intended to malign the DoD, any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, individual, or anyone.