The Afterburn Podcast

Video: https://youtu.be/L0D9c5nYO5E

China's Chengdu Aircraft Corporation has more than doubled J-20 production efficiency using autonomous vehicles and AI-driven dark factories. With roughly 300 J-20s in service today and output estimated at 100-120 airframes annually, the PLAAF could field over 1,000 fifth-generation fighters by 2030. Today we discuss what that production capacity means, how it compares to F-35 output, and whether quantity changes the calculus regardless of quality.

Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off
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Watch this episode on YT: https://youtu.be/8X_ll2FrRIA

Beijing confirmed Chinese engineers were at Pakistani air bases supporting J-10CE operations during Operation Sindoor in May 2025. Today we discuss PL-15 & the J-10CE's combat performance data, what China just proved about its export hardware, and what the J-35 deal with Pakistan means now.

Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off
🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫
🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺
Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast
🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial


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Dos Gringos Concert: dosgringosdenver.com

James "Whacker" Reeman IG: @f16pilot

Whacker's Content: Fastjetfriday.com

Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off
🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫
🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺
Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast
🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial


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Roy "Deacon" Qualls went from zero flight hours to undergraduate pilot training six months later. From there — OV-10s, F-15s, the Louisiana Air National Guard, and a parallel career at American Airlines flying the 777.

In this episode Deacon walks through some of the defining moments of that career — receiving the 9/11 shoot down order on an unclassified fax, scrambling toward Air Force One on the morning of September 11th, flying a night CAP over Houston with a live weapons free ROE, and leading airmen through Hurricane Katrina rescue operations out of New Orleans.

 

Pilot's Edge: Think, Train, and Fly Like a Pro: https://www.amazon.com/Pilots-Edge-Think-Train-Like/dp/B0FY26ZJJM

Deacon Fini Flight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4X8CIjCj9k

Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off
🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫
🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺
Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast
🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial


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When two brand new F-35s sustained catastrophic damage in separate accidents, the Air Force faced a decision most people don't know exists — write them off as total losses or call in one of the most specialized and least talked about teams in the United States Air Force. They called in the Aircraft Battle Damage Repair team. ABDR. 

In this episode, I sit down with General Sebren and Senior Master Sergeant Cross to break down exactly what aircraft battle damage repair is, how the decision gets made to repair or write off a damaged aircraft, and what it takes to put a $100 million fighter jet back together when the damage doesn't fit any technical order or regulation ever written. We dive into the "Frankenstein F-35" — two damaged airframes combined into one flyable jet — and what that process actually looks like from the people who did it.

Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman https://afoqtwingman.com/Code: AFTERBURN for 10% off
🛫 Become a Fighter/Bomber/Cargo/Tanker/RPA Pilot 🎯 : http://bogidope.com/?bd=tappodcast 🛫
🔺 Aviation & Defense Newsletter - https://bit.ly/AfterburnNewsletter 🔺
Become a Patron, Support the Show, & Gain Exclusive Benefits: https://www.patreon.com/c/theafterburnpodcast
🥷 Scrub Your Info from Data Brokers & Protect Yourself | https://aura.com/afterburn 14-day free trial


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