Growler Jams

Some names are etched into memorials. Some are painted on aircraft. Some are carried quietly in the hearts of the people who served beside them. This Memorial Day, we remember the Americans who gave everything for this country and for the people standing next to them. The freedom we enjoy is never free. Thank you to the fallen, and to the families who carry their legacy forward. Patrick, Kooch, Andy, Miley, and Doug, you will remain in our hearts forever young. God bless you. Until we meet again.

Airshow Fans—This One’s For You! Wings Over South Texas: April 18–19 @ Naval Air Station Kingsville - Blue Angels - FREE admission - and A LOT more! For military families, the airfield is also doing a practice run on Friday the 17th that's open to all military ID card holders. See the link below for all the details: https://www.wingsoversouthtexas.com

Well… it finally happened. We just passed 400,000 subscribers. FOUR. HUNDRED. THOUSAND. That number honestly blows my mind. What started as a simple way to stay connected with my family has grown into something I never could’ve imagined. To every one of you who has watched, commented, shared, or just quietly followed along over the years — thank you. I truly mean that. This channel exists because of you. Quick update on where things stand: As I mentioned in my previous post, the approval process for new videos has become pretty complicated, to the point that it’s just not worth the effort right now. The good news? I retire in 12 months. And once that happens, you can expect this channel to pick up serious momentum toward the end of the year. I’ve got a lot of ideas — and not just new videos. Stay tuned. On the civilian side, I’m finishing up my Airline Transport Pilot certification in the next few weeks. After that, I’ll be sending applications to the major airlines. I’m looking forward to following in my dad’s footsteps… or maybe his contrails… as I transition into commercial aviation. Since I can’t publish new content for a bit, here are a few videos that, for whatever reason, never really caught the algorithm: If you want to learn more about me, my dad, and why I chose to fly, watch this. This was the most fun I’ve had recording a video. 👉 https://youtu.be/aLkS_WmtuVI?si=XADUX... If you missed the video comparing Growler fuel to American hot tubs...yes, that’s actually how I (and probably just me) secretly measured it. 👉 https://youtu.be/bw-1VGox25s?si=NSYMQ... If you’re into the technical side of catapult launches, like nerdy technical with slow-mo breakdowns, here’s the jam where I geek out a bit on the USS GW. 👉 https://youtu.be/itxCibqCUZw?si=wTj1H... And finally, a throwback with a Band of Brothers–style intro. This video also has the best sun-angle (what we call a "pinky launch") of all of my jams. 👉 https://youtu.be/DwnWGP9E7xI?si=C3eQF... Thanks again for being part of this journey. 400,000 is an incredible milestone, and I’m grateful for every one of you. Cheers, Pail

ICYMI, below is a link to an interview I did a while back on the Mover and Gonky Show. The three of us talk about darn near everything including: how and why I joined the Navy, my career assignments, and what I am doing these days. For those that haven't heard, I am still around and instructing in Kingsville for another year or so until I retire. I'm currently working on my ATP (Airline Transportation Pilot) license and am in the process of applying for the airlines. American, United, and Delta are my top choices. I'm excited about the next chapter of my life. I plan to retire in early 2027. As far as the channel goes...the approval process for my videos has gotten more complicated. I have two videos completed and ready to publish and I plan to make three or four more before I retire. Once retired, the channel will be reborn, without restrictions. I am looking forward to seeing what this channel can become. I have so many ideas. Hope you all had a great Christmas. God bless! Cheers, Pail https://youtu.be/mjAEMk_ELtw?si=gL-pa...

The Growler Jams Story – Pail’s Journey to the EA-18G

The Mover and Gonky Show

1y ago • 101,442 views

Happy Veteran's Day to those who have served and those who continue to serve our great nation. I am truly blessed to serve in a capacity where I have the opportunity to mentor and train the generation of Sailors and Marines that will soon enough stand the watch. In case you missed it, below is the link to a jam that was filmed in south Texas, where I will instruct for another year or so until I retire. I am proud to fly alongside all of the pilots that you see in the jams, and thank you to the civilian maintainers in Kingsville, most of which who also served, who allow us to not only live, but also fly the dream. Cheers! Pail

I have two videos ready-to-go. I'm just waiting on the PAO to approve them for release. Hopefully, the green light will come soon. Until then, I routinely get asked how I got my callsign. I let you all hear the story a few years ago, but her is a re-post for the rookies. How I got my callsign... It was the Winter of 2011. I was a young Lieutenant showing up to my Fleet squadron, fresh out of the RAG. My first job in the squadron was NATOPS Officer. It was a typical "Fun New Guy" job. I had to maintain important qualification and designation paperwork for all aircrew in the squadron in training jackets. It wasn't a glamorous job, but if I screwed it up, it was a big deal. I was a little nervous to be in the Fleet and eager to prove myself as the FNG. My boss in the Safety Department was "Bucket". Bucket wasn't well-liked in the squadron, and I was too junior in the command to understand why. He took me under his wing and helped me get established in the squadron and seemed like a good enough guy. Over my first few months as NATOPS Officer, I had to prepare the squadron for an upcoming NATOPS inspection. No one else seems to care about the inspection, except my DH and Front Office. I was required to get the squadron's paperwork up to par, and get the aircrew ready for written examinations that were coming as part of the inspection. Needless to say, the Junior Officers didn't like Bucket and out of spite and didn't want to put in the time to prepare for the inspection. I did my best to prepare the Ready Room for the upcoming inspection, but I lacked credibility as a FNG and soon became known as the little Bucket...or Pail. There were also one or two occurrences (maybe more, if you ask someone other than me) of me losing SA on important training sorties as a new guy. Much like in the expression "your bucket is too full"...needless to say, I earned the callsign "Pail" from my humorously small SA bucket as a FNG pilot and my apparent likeness to the man they called "Bucket". I am a firm believer that my bucket is now slightly larger than Fleet average. There...you have it. __________ https://youtu.be/h9UJFcGhx4w?si=qodOM... This video from last Fall was awesome. We got to fly over the USS Kingsville in downtown Corpus Christi during its commissioning ceremony. The algorithm didn't like it, and it wasn't pushed out to the masses. Give it watch and let me know what you think! __________ https://youtu.be/LOtfdVoA89s?si=9dQ_T... This jam has gotten over 2M views in the last 6 months. It's a carrier landing video and I break down the pilot scan. Be sure to check it out as well if you missed it. __________ Sorry I don't have anything new for you right now, but the old ones are still pretty good. Have a great weekend. Cheers, Pail

A quick reminder that my new jam goes live tomorrow morning at 1000 central time. Be sure to turn on your notifications if you haven't done so already, so you can see can be one of the first to see it. I accidentally let the video go live for about 15 seconds and about 70 lucky people saw it. Oops! I hope you liked it. I look forward to hearing from you all tomorrow. Cheers! Pail

Happy New Year! I just finished my next video, and this one is quite a bit different from its predecessors. This is the first video that I filmed where the camera faced me AND it was shot in 4K! This sortie was a defensive BFM instructional flight where we fought another T-45 over the beautiful coastal waters near Key West, FL. You can see the bandit behind us as we try to shake him. It was a lot of fun. The jam will go live next Friday morning at 1000 central. I hope you all enjoy it. I look forward to reading your comments. Make sure to turn on your Growler Jams notifications on the app, so you don’t miss it. Cheers, Pail

New Growler Jams this Friday at 1000 central! This video is unlike anything that I have made before. It's a 12-minute walking tour of the flight deck of the USS GW. I point out a lot of the things that you have already seen in my jams, and introduce a lot of new features of the massive flight deck. I even laced in action clips in the walk-about to keep it interesting. This was a lot of work. Be sure to like and share with your friends. I'd appreciate it. Cheers, Pail

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Growler Jams