🎙️ Episode 112 – How Do You Know When to Stop the Fight? Welcome back to another airpower-packed episode of Lessons from the Cockpit! I’m your host Lt. Col. Mark Hasara, retired KC-135 Weapons Officer and Joint Specialty Officer. For 60 years, I’ve lived and breathed aviation.

Today we are going to talk about a very tough aspect of planning for war! Here’s the question I’ve been getting all week: “Mark, how do you know when it’s time to stop shooting?” How does a war end? Who decides when the mission is complete? And what happens if we stop too late—or too soon? This episode is all about the end game in combat—how planners use tools like the Joint Publication 5-0 to define victory, identify military end states, and determine when it’s time to terminate operations. It’s not theory—it’s the real stuff we use to plan, fight, and win. And I’ve been in the room when those decisions were made. From buried Iraqi fighter jets to the politics of military culmination, I’ll walk you through what it takes to bring a war to a decisive stop—without giving your enemy a second chance.

🛡️ NEW SPONSOR ALERT – VALOROUS TV This week, I’m proud to welcome Valorous TV to the Lessons from the Cockpit mission!

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🎯 WALL PILOT – Aviation Art You Can Stick Anywhere Proud sponsor of this episode! Wall Pilot makes peel-and-stick vinyl prints of iconic aircraft—over 158 profiles ready-to-print, or we can custom-draw your favorite jet with your name on the canopy.

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If you’ve ever wondered how wars end, who makes that call, and why it’s more complicated than most people realize—this episode’s for you. Strap in. Let’s talk airpower.

And remember… Nobody Kicks Ass Without Tanker Gas. NOBODY!