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Today we hear our first Combat Story from a military intelligence linguist and signal interceptor, Clay Jensen. Clay deployed six times to both Iraq and Afghanistan and has spent considerable time helping to get our Afghan allies out of Afghanistan.
Clay was in a Blackhawk when it was shot out of the sky while trying to identify the location of Al-Qai’da’s then #2 leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan. Clay was also forward deployed in 2007 to identify the location of Bin Laden during what became a failed raid to capture AQ’s leader at the time (listeners will recall that our former guest Mike Rutledge was also on that operation).
Clay supported clandestine and Top Secret operations working alongside NSA and other three letter agencies in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Latin America as part of both the 82nd Airborne and 7th Special Forces Group in a Special Operations Team - Alpha (or SOT-A).
I hope you enjoy this first ever Combat Story from a signal interceptor who we, as Apache pilots, relied on regularly to triangulate targets, as much as I did.
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- Intro Song: Sport Rock from Audio Jungle
Find Clay Jensen Online:
- LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/clayton-jensen-793b468b/
Show Notes:
00:00 - Intro
01:02 - Guest Introduction (Clay Jensen)
02:15 - Interview begins
02:48 - Impressions on Iraq 20 years later
04:57 - Japanese upbringing
09:24 - Bilingual for Defense Language Institute
11:31 - Interest in the Military
12:58 - Joining the Military
14:57 - Recruitment
18:15 - Working with Agencies
19:24 - Training for the Signals and Intelligence
23:38 - Joining the 82nd
24:40 - Linguistics in regular MOS
28:08 - 9/11
31:05 - 1st Deployment to Afghanistan
37:28 - Supporting the battle as a Linguist
40:08 - Navigating the outcome of a battle
44:06 - Transfering to Special Forces
46:11 - Proving yourself
47:20 - Definition of SOT-A
49:33 - Difference between standard MOS and Special Forces
51:21 - The Raid for Zawahiri
01:09:33 - Columbia
01:16:59 - The importance of Vocabulary
01:19:37 - Funny things
01:24:19 - Relationship with Interpreters
01:27:03 - Getting involved in the Afghanistan Evacuation
01:34:57 - Most courageous act
01:38:26 - Best and worst MREs
01:40:07 - Sentimental items
01:41:22 - Would you do it again
01:43:09 - Listener comments and shout outs
Ambushing the Taliban; Four BUD/S Attempts; SDV, DEVGRU and ASOT III; Protecting Tom Cruise; Kingsman Anti-Human Trafficking - Rodney Brown
Rd. 2 | Surviving the Largest Naval Special Warfare Combat Operation | Mike Drop | Navy SEAL | Gifted K-9 Trainer | Warrior Dog Foundation - Mike Ritland
Surviving the Largest Naval Special Warfare Combat Operation | Mike Drop | Navy SEAL | Gifted K-9 Trainer | Warrior Dog Foundation - Mike Ritland
Sniper vs Sniper Battle - Killing the Enemy’s Most Lethal Sniper | Force Recon | AJ Pasciuti (RD 2)
USMC Sniper & Force Recon in Fallujah | Shooting w/ Chris Kyle | American Sniper | AJ Pasciuti (Rd1)
When Grown Men Follow You Into Battle, Green Beret 18Z (former 18E), Nick Lavery Dive School Instructor, Overcoming Suicide, Cook to LRSS to Special Forces - Trevor Beaman
Flying Combat Missions as the First Female Afghan Pilot, Receiving the International Women of Courage Award, Flying with the Blue Angels, Avoiding Assassinations - Niloofar Rahmani
16 Hour Gunfight with Special Forces 18C, Kamdesh Battle, No Plan B, 48KIA in One Day, Nearly Shot in the Head, Founder of Green Beret Chronicles | Jay Dorleus
Finding Meaning and Healing After the Military, Trash Talking in Uniform, Camaraderie in Combat | Cav Soldier + 18C | Kenny Stone and Ben Raymond
160th Gun Pilot, Saddam Capture, Jessica Lynch Raid, Vehicle Interdictions, Danger Close Shooting, AH-6 & MH-6 Pilot, DFC, Silver Star, CW5 Steve Lapping (Round 2)
Two Star General with Bipolar Disorder Who Engineered the Push into Baghdad | Major General (Ret) Gregg Martin, PhD
Pat Tillman’s Last Battle and the Importance of Fighting Toxic Leadership w/ Former Unit Operator Pete Blaber
Near Misses as a Marine Rifleman and MARSOC Operator | Losing Fellow Marines in Combat | Company and Non-Profit Founder | Mike Bloch
Flying Special Operations MH-53 in Combat | CV-22 Osprey, Apache, and Cobra Aviator | Sean Borland
MC-130 Special Operations Aircrew and Navigator | 8th Special Operations Squadron | Mike LaFeve (Round 2)
Marine Special Operator (MARSOC) Commander | Mozart Group Founder Andy Milburn
F-16 Fighter Pilot | Evaded Multiple Surface-to-Air Missiles | Gulf War Desert Storm F-16 Combat Aviator | Fighter Weapons School Top Gun | Jet Jernigan
Special Ops Chaplain and Army Green Beret, 270 Jumps and 400+ Flight Hours, Strategic Advisor to 8 Four Star Generals - George Youstra
DEVGRU | SEAL Teams One and Two | Contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan | Tier One Tactical | Chris White
Ryan Flies With The Patriots Jet Team and Scott "Intake" Kartvedt
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