RANGER, RRC (JSOC), OMEGA Team Operator | Mike Edwards (throwback episode)

original airdate: 10/20/23<br /><br />Mike Edwards recounts his journey from the conventional Army to the 75th Ranger Regiment and the Regimental Reconnaissance Company (RRC), sharing stories from combat in Iraq, clandestine reconnaissance missions, and years spent leading and training some of the military's most elite units. He also reflects on Project Exodus Relief, the challenges of transitioning out of the military, and how faith helped him overcome the personal struggles that followed his service<br /><br />help support the show:<br />https://www.patreon.com/c/TheTeamHouse<br /><br />00:00 - Start<br />01:27 - Growing Up in Alabama<br />03:24 - Mechanized Infantry and Plans for Special Forces<br />06:00 - Korea and the Impact of 9/11<br />08:36 - Choosing the Ranger Regiment<br />09:50 - Almost Getting Dropped from RIP<br />11:26 - Arriving at Ranger Battalion<br />13:41 - The Smoke Grenade Incident<br />16:03 - Life in the Ranger Mortar Platoon<br />19:59 - Leading Raids in Iraq<br />21:33 - The Tal Afar Firefight<br />29:36 - Sponsor Break<br />32:29 - Discovering Regimental Reconnaissance Company<br />34:18 - The Omega Program<br />35:59 - RRC Selection and Training<br />37:05 - 40-Mile Infiltrations with 100-Pound Rucks<br />41:08 - Life Inside RRC<br />43:19 - What RRC Actually Does<br />45:04 - RRC Becomes a National-Level Asset<br />46:02 - Training the Afghan Reconnaissance Unit<br />47:17 - Dead Drops and Tradecraft in Afghanistan<br />50:04 - How the Afghan Reconnaissance Program Worked<br />55:45 - Working Through Afghan Proxies<br />56:22 - Low-Visibility Missions and Nighttime Raids<br />58:19 - Learning Dari for Battlefield Interrogations<br />1:01:04 - Creating Project Exodus Relief<br />1:03:47 - The Afghans Left Behind<br />1:06:51 - Escaping Afghanistan and Human Trafficking<br />1:10:14 - Afghan Commandos at the Southern Border<br />1:13:31 - Moral Injury After the Afghanistan Withdrawal<br />1:16:07 - Life for Former Afghan Special Operators<br />1:18:18 - Afghan Commandos Joining the Taliban or Resistance<br />1:20:44 - Wagner Group Recruiting Afghan Commandos<br />1:21:35 - The American Allegedly Recruiting for Wagner<br />1:24:12 - A Missed Opportunity for Covert Afghan Units<br />1:26:07 - Life After Military Service<br />1:27:20 - Protecting Madonna<br />1:28:29 - Finding Missing and Trafficked People<br />1:31:29 - Finding Purpose After the Military<br />1:33:26 - Anger, Addiction, and Nearly Taking His Own Life<br />1:35:04 - How Studying the Bible Changed Him<br />1:38:52 - PTSD, TBI, and Veteran Suicide<br />1:42:06 - Why Veterans Need Buddy Checks<br />1:44:04 - The Turning Point in His Recovery<br />1:46:02 - Psychedelic Therapy and Faith<br />1:52:08 - The Difficult Transition Out of Special Operations<br />1:56:55 - Audience Questions<br />1:58:52 - RRC Selection Compared to Delta Force<br />2:01:03 - Shooting and Training Inside RRC<br />2:03:19 - RRC vs. Other Reconnaissance Units<br />2:07:02 - A Possible Hypersonic Aircraft Encounter<br />2:11:29 - How the Omega Program Worked<br />2:18:44 - Military Freefall from 35,000 Feet<br />2:22:19 - The MP7 and Special Operations Weapons<br />2:24:31 - Closing Remarks<br /><br />Become a supporter of this podcast: <a href="https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss">https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support</a>.