The Afterburn Podcast
Strap in the cockpit as we dive into the stories of the men and women who defend the freedoms we love. From the cockpit of military jets to boots on the ground. The Afterburn Podcast dives into their stories, the planes,...
John "Rain" Waters · John Waters
Insights from recent episode analysis
On the show
Hosts: John "Rain" Waters, John Waters
Recent guests
R"
GS
SM
MG
J"
RZ
+12- Roy "Deacon" Qualls1 ep
- General Sebren1 ep
- Senior Master Sergeant Cross1 ep
Also: Maj. Gen. John "Trapper" Winters, James "Whacker" Reeman, Rob Zettel, Col Kevin "Flint" Hicok, "Ghost" Trembly, "Cash" Croghan, Smalls, Scar, Glitch, Cuffs, Glib Richard, MSgt. Edge, Lt Col Tilton, SrA Michalenko, CMSgt. Hilliard
Audience Interest
Estimated Reach: 1.5M to 7.8M
Listeners across platforms
Podcast Focus
Categories: leisure · aviation
+2 more
Publishing Consistency
Frequency: ~3-4 / Week
250+ episodes since 2020
Insights are generated by CastFox AI using publicly available data, episode content, and proprietary models.
Most discussed topics
aviation
18
air defense
10
military operations
9
military aviation
6
military history
4
pilot training
4
Brands & references
Generic platforms filtered out.
Medium Confidence
Total monthly reach
1.5M to 7.8M
Based on 1 signal.
Built from
Charts in 37 marketsHome market: United States
By chart position
- 🇺🇸United States · AviationHOME#8724K to 3.8M
- 🇮🇳India · Aviation#650K to 263K
- 🇬🇧United Kingdom · Aviation#1040K to 209K
- 🇨🇴CO · Aviation#133K to 173K
- 🇨🇦Canada · Aviation#833K to 172K
- Per-Episode Audience
Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
1.0M to 5.4M🎙 Biweekly cadence·291 episodes·Last published 6d ago - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
1.5M to 7.8M🇺🇸70%🇮🇳5%🇬🇧4%+11 more - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
588K to 3.1M
Market Insights
This ShowCategory Avg
No category insights available.
📡
Platform Distribution
Reach across major podcast platforms, updated hourly
Total Followers
—
Total Plays
—
Total Reviews
—
* Data sourced directly from platform APIs and aggregated hourly across all major podcast directories.
Episodes
291
~1.6 per week
Avg length
33m 43s
3m 55s – 2h 02m 52s
Range
Sep 2020 – Oct 2026
Topics
102
aviation, air defense +100
Guests
18
Col Kevin "Flint" Hicok +17 · last 30 eps
44 of 44
| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/15/26 |  Did Houthi's use Drones as a Decoy | No description provided. | 9m 18s | ||||||
| 10/14/26 |  The Navy's Secret Fighter Is Back and Boeing Has It | No description provided. | 9m 28s | ||||||
| 10/9/26 |  Taiwan’s First New F-16s Land After a Month Stuck in Hawaii | No description provided. | 13m 43s | ||||||
| 10/6/26 |  The Air Force Fixed a Shot-Up KC-135 While the Base Was Still Being Attacked | No description provided. | 12m 15s | ||||||
| 10/2/26 |  US Air Force Just Named Its First Two Robot Fighters | No description provided. | 12m 09s | ||||||
| 10/1/26 |  NASA Pulled Its Last SR-71 Into a Hangar and Won't Say Why | No description provided. | 10m 09s | ||||||
| 9/28/26 |  His Apache Was Hit Twice Over Jalalabad. He Went Back Up | Brad Young | No description provided. | 1h 13m 20s | ||||||
| 9/12/26 |  Gary "Wolfman" Wolf | A-10 Fighter Pilot | No description provided. | 1h 39m 29s | ||||||
| 9/10/26 |  A-10 Hit over Baghdad: The Story of 8 April 2003 | No description provided. | 27m 58s | ||||||
| 8/14/26 | military aviationOperation Midnight Hammer+3 | Col Kevin "Flint" Hicok | 20th Fighter WingCENTCOM | IranYemen | Col Kevin Hicok20th Fighter Wing+6 | — | 40m 49s | ||
Want analysis for the episodes below?Free for Pro Submit a request, we'll have your selected episodes analyzed within an hour. Free, at no cost to you, for Pro users. | |||||||||
| 8/13/26 | military aviationF-16 operations+4 | "Ghost" Trembly"Cash" Croghan | F-16 Wild WeaselB-2+5 | — | F-16Operation Midnight Hammer+8 | — | 1h 28m 27s | ||
| 8/13/26 | military aviationF-16 operations+4 | SmallsScar | 55th Fighter SquadronAfterburn Defense | IranYemen | F-16Operation Midnight Hammer+5 | — | 1h 49m 49s | ||
| 8/13/26 | F-16 PilotsCombat Deployment+4 | Glitch | Afterburn Defense55th Fighter Squadron | IranYemen | F-16Wild Weasel+8 | — | 42m 05s | ||
| 8/13/26 | military operationsaviation history+3 | Cuffs | F-16 Block 50AGM-88 HARM+2 | IranYemen | Operation Midnight Hammer55th Fighter Squadron+8 | — | 40m 57s | ||
| 8/13/26 | military operationsaviation+3 | Glib Richard | 55th Fighter SquadronAfterburn Defense | IranYemen | Operation Midnight HammerGlib Richard+3 | — | 21m 31s | ||
| 8/13/26 | aviationmilitary operations+4 | MSgt. Edge | Afterburn Defense | IranYemen | Operation Midnight HammerMSgt. Edge+7 | — | 18m 22s | ||
| 8/13/26 | military logisticsair operations+3 | Lt Col Tilton | Afterburn DefenseAir Force | IranYemen | logisticsair force+5 | — | 36m 35s | ||
| 8/13/26 | aviationmilitary operations+4 | SrA Michalenko | 55th Fighter SquadronAfterburn Defense | IranYemen | F-16Iran strike+5 | — | 21m 57s | ||
| 8/13/26 | military operationsaviation maintenance+4 | CMSgt. Hilliard | 55th Fighter SquadronAfterburn Defense | IranYemen | F-16Operation Midnight Hammer+6 | — | 41m 04s | ||
| 8/13/26 |  If That's What Saves Your Life, It Has to Work | Operation Midnight Hammer | Weapons Tech SSgt Dray | No description provided. | 27m 22s | ||||||
| 8/13/26 |  The Buildup Before the Iran Strike | Operation Midnight Hammer | Logistics Director Capt. Grooms | No description provided. | 18m 38s | ||||||
| 8/13/26 |  "We Knew Something Was Coming" | Operation Midnight Hammer | Maintenance Leadership | No description provided. | 29m 15s | ||||||
| 8/2/26 |  #150 Combat Search & Rescue: HH-60 Pave Hawk Into a Firefight to Save 2 Wounded Marines | No description provided. | 1h 47m 21s | ||||||
| 7/25/26 |  Why Iran Holds the Better Hand Against the US Right Now | Dr. Mike Bosack | No description provided. | 1h 11m 57s | ||||||
| 7/16/26 | military operationsaviation+4 | — | Afterburn DefenseF-16 Wild Weasel | Iran | Operation Midnight HammerF-16 Wild Weasel+3 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 19m 44s | ||
| 6/28/26 | military aviationnuclear facilities+4 | — | 55th Fighter Squadron20th Fighter Wing | Iran | Operation Midnight HammerF-16 Wild Weasel+4 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 16m 16s | ||
| 6/21/26 | aviationmilitary history+4 | — | 55th Fighter Squadron20th Fighter Wing | YemenIran | F-16 Wild WeaselOperation Midnight Hammer+8 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 13m 55s | ||
| 6/19/26 | aviationmilitary operations+4 | — | AGM-88 HARM55th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron | IranSaudi airspace | F-16Operation Midnight Hammer+6 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 5m 24s | ||
| 5/29/26 | aviationmilitary history+4 | Rob Zettel | U.S. Air ForceAmerican MiG Pilot+2 | — | Red EaglesUSAF+6 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 1h 29m 22s | ||
| 5/29/26 | CubaRaul Castro+5 | — | U.S. Department of JusticeGAESA | CubaVenezuela | Raul CastroCuba+8 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 9m 39s | ||
| 5/17/26 | aviationmilitary aircraft+4 | — | OA-1K Sky Raider IIL3Harris+1 | Waco, Texas | Sky Raider IIL3Harris+6 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 15m 05s | ||
| 5/15/26 | aviationmilitary technology+4 | — | J-20F-35+2 | — | J-20fifth-generation fighters+5 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 8m 48s | ||
| 5/13/26 | military operationsaviation+3 | — | J-10CEPL-15+3 | — | J-10CEPakistan+7 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 6m 38s | ||
| 5/8/26 | concertaviation+3 | James "Whacker" Reeman | dosgringosdenver.comFastjetfriday.com+4 | Denver | Dos Gringosaviation+3 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 3m 55s | ||
| 4/25/26 | aviationmilitary history+4 | Roy "Deacon" Qualls | Pilot's Edge: Think, Train, and Fly Like a ProAir Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT) Prep with AFOQT Wingman+5 | — | 9/11shoot down order+7 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 1h 25m 22s | ||
| 4/24/26 | aircraft repairmilitary aviation+3 | General SebrenSenior Master Sergeant Cross | F-35Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT)+1 | — | battle damage repairF-35+3 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 34m 38s | ||
| 4/21/26 | A-10 WarthogAir Force+3 | — | Air Force | — | A-10 WarthogAir Force+4 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 11m 15s | ||
| 4/21/26 | militaryaviation+3 | — | — | IndonesiaAmerica | IndonesiaAmerica+5 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 9m 29s | ||
| 4/18/26 | military budgetdefense spending+4 | — | F-47Sentinel ICBM+5 | — | defense budgetPentagon+7 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 7m 31s | ||
| 4/16/26 | military strategyaviation+4 | — | — | USStrait of Hormuz | US NavyStrait of Hormuz+5 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 8m 03s | ||
| 4/12/26 | AviationMilitary+4 | — | BogiDopePatreon | PakistanDesert | AFOQTPilot+5 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 11m 27s | ||
| 4/12/26 | dronesaviation+4 | — | Global Strike CommandAir Force Officer Qualifying Test | Barksdale Air Force BaseLouisiana | dronesBarksdale Air Force Base+6 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 8m 51s | ||
| 4/11/26 | military aircraftChina-Pakistan relations+3 | — | J-35 Stealth FighterChina+4 | — | J-35stealth fighter+6 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 11m 34s | ||
| 4/10/26 | fighter aviationmilitary career+4 | Maj. Gen. John "Trapper" Winters | Air Force | — | fighter jetsF-4 Electronic Warfare Officer+5 | AFOQT WingmanAFTERBURN | 2h 02m 52s | ||
![[Official Trailer] Inside Operation MIDNIGHT HAMMER | The F-16 Wild Weasels Who Flew Into Iran episode artwork](https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/be9f0830-4ef1-43cc-8ab2-5afe8e5be0a9/89283108-7520-42bb-bf76-375c326e6197/3000x3000/operation_midnight_hammer_1000_x_1000_px.jpg?aid=rss_feed){kind=small}
Showing 44 of 291
291
Episodes
0.9x / wk
Cadence
34m
Avg length
6y
Active
since 2020
1.5M to 7.8M
Monthly reach
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For Guests
Pro61%Guest rateof episodes
1.9Guest slotsper month
97%First-timersof guests
26dLast guestago
Best-fit guest: Founder/CEO
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Pro10Sponsorsdetected
40Episodesanalyzed
60%Promo codesof sponsors
45%Repeat sponsorsrenew
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Chart history for The Afterburn Podcast
Peaked at #1 in New Zealand, top 10 in 13 of 44 tracked markets, currently #1 in New Zealand.
| Market | Genre | Peak | Current | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | — | #1 | #1 | — |
| CO | — | #1 | #1 | — |
| HU | — | #3 | #3 | — |
| PH | — | #5 | #5 | — |
| India | — | #6 | #6 | — |
| Australia | — | #7 | #7 | — |
| TR | — | #7 | #7 | — |
| United States | — | #8 | #8 | — |
| Canada | — | #8 | #8 | — |
| Netherlands | — | #8 | #8 | — |
| SG | — | #8 | #8 | — |
| IL | — | #9 | #9 | — |
| United Kingdom | — | #10 | #10 | — |
| MY | — | #11 | #11 | — |
| Ireland | — | #14 | #14 | — |
| PT | — | #14 | #14 | — |
| Denmark | — | #14 | #14 | — |
| France | — | #15 | #15 | — |
| Sweden | — | #15 | #15 | — |
| PL | — | #15 | #15 | — |
Chart Positions
44 placements across 37 markets.
Chart Positions
44 placements across 37 markets.