The Hangar Z Podcast: Touching the Dragon With Jimmy Hatch and Jack Schonely in Episode 100!
By Vertical Mag | September 20, 2023
Estimated reading time 4 minutes, 46 seconds.
Welcome to episode 100 of The Hangar Z Podcast brought to you by Vertical Valor Magazine.
One thing that has been constant for The Hangar Z Podcast as it has grown over the last three years and 100 episodes, is change. The podcast has constantly worked to bring new and different types of interviews to the aviation community. Its hope in doing so is that the guests’ stories will challenge listeners, motivate listeners, and work to strengthen the global public safety aviation community.
The guest for Hangar Z’s 100th episode will definitely challenge and motivate listeners; this is part one of a two-part series.
During the Hangar Z Leadership Summit 2023, Jack Schonely introduced host Jon Gray to the book Touching the Dragon by Jimmy Hatch. After the leadership summit, Gray bought the book and found he could not put it down.
Hatch is a former Navy Seal, master naval parachutist. He was involved in over 150 missions between Afghanistan, Iraq, Bosnia and Africa. Hatch was also an expert K9 trainer and handler as a Navy SEAL.
He writes about the battles he fought overseas as well as the battles he fought on the home front after being critically wounded while attempting to rescue an Army deserter.
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In Touching the Dragon as well as on the podcast, Hatch courageously discusses the ever-important topic of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by opening up about his own battle as he worked to heal from the career-ending gunshot wound that exploded through his femur, requiring 18 surgeries and 12 months of recovery, in which he had to relearn how to walk.
Hatch talks about the nonprofit K9 organization he developed to protect our nation’s working dogs, called Spikes K9 Fund. As a K9 handler on several deployments, Hatch’s life was regularly spared by the work of K9s and one of the most memorable was Spike. On Hatch’s final deployment, the night he was critically wounded, a K9 Remco spared his life while losing his own. From that evening on, Hatch oriented his life around the training, care, and preservation of working dogs. In addition to working as the founder and president of the fund, he works with local law enforcement to fine-tune their work.
Thank you for joining The Hangar Z Podcast over the last 100 episode. They look forward to continuing to bring inspiring stories and conversations like the one with Jack Schonely and Jimmy Hatch.
By Vertical Mag | September 20, 2023 
