In this crazy episode of Submarine Sea Stories, Chris Waits shares his fascinating journey, from growing up in a Navy family, attending MIT, and finding his passion in nuclear engineering, to serving in the Navy aboard a nuclear-powered submarine. Chris recounts a harrowing incident where his submarine, the USS Hartford, collided with the USS New Orleans, describing the immediate impact, frantic aftermath, and the life-altering lessons he learned. Despite the challenging experience, Chris transf...
Jul 14, 2025•43 min
Join host Bill Nowicki as he dives deep into the remarkable journey of Oliver Hannan, a submariner with 44 years in the nuclear industry. In this episode of Submarine Sea Stories, they discuss Oliver's extensive career from his beginnings as a nuke machinist mate to his critical role in the preservation and demolition of historical nuclear prototypes. Oliver shares his experiences in solving complex problems and highlights the importance of innovation and integrity in maintaining America’s naval...
Jul 07, 2025•49 min•Season 1Ep. 61
In this episode of the Submarine Sea Stories Podcast, host Bill Nowicki reunites with Dave Bowman, a former submariner who was first interviewed nearly 11 years ago. They reminisce about Dave’s captivating career in the Navy, his passion for naval history, and his extraordinary journey from a landlocked upbringing to life underwater. Dave shares personal anecdotes about influential mentors, his deep love for submarines, and his transformative 20-year process of converting to Judaism from a conse...
Jun 08, 2025•34 min•Season 1Ep. 60
Join us in this insightful episode as we dive into the world of nuclear energy with Mark Schneider, a former US Navy nuclear operator now working to reignite nuclear power in Australia. Discover Schneider’s intriguing career journey, from his formative years in Oregon to his extensive 20-year Navy service, where he first developed his passion for nuclear science. Learn about his advocacy for nuclear power, the regulatory challenges in Australia, and the exciting developments in the nuclear suppl...
May 20, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 59
Bob Schuetz grew up in New Jersey and chose the ROTC when his parents couldn't afford college for all 4 kids. He joined the Navy and fell in love with submarines during his summer cruise and switched his major to Nuclear Engineering from Chemical Engineering. As all potential officers do, he interviewed with Admiral Rickover and eventually commanded the fast attack submarine that bore the father of the nuclear Navy's name. He became friends with the Admiral's wife (she called him the Admiral too...
May 06, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 58
Bob Bailey had to get out of New Mexico. He was running with the wrong crowd and "ran away from home into the Navy." He started out slow and was not the most squared away sailor, but built his career and matured into a leader that knew how a great tactical sonar man acted. He once flew into the air during the emergency blow and lived to tell about it. Here's his story.
Jan 17, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 57
Joe Miller grew up in Virginia Beach surfing and staying away from Navy. It wasn't until he was married and laid off, that Joe reconsidered his decision and joined Uncle Sam's navy as an officer. Joe shares many stories that his wife was tired of hearing that you will love.
Sep 01, 2021•48 min•Season 1Ep. 56
David Rifkin never planned on joining the Navy. He found the salary for a community college professors not quite enough. He consented to an interview with Adm Rickover and was accepted to the Navy Nuclear Power program. David worked his way up the ranks, supporting his sailors and officers making decisions while commanding the USS Billfish, SSN 676. He is still active the USSVI as the base commander in Jacksonville, Florida. Who knows, it might be time to take a trip down there for a visit....
Jun 20, 2021•40 min•Season 1Ep. 55
Daniel Newcomer started his submarine career aspirations in 8th grade. His dad was a traveling Baptist preacher and when he was onboard the USS City of Corpus Christi was exposed to a family tour that both surprised and shocked him. Now Daniel reconnects with his submarine brothers and enjoys reminiscing about his times in the smoke shack. He also has reconciled with his Dad. I guess his dad came around to the fact that submariners are good folks deep down.
May 29, 2021•45 min•Season 1Ep. 54
Kevin Loewe couldn't find a job in his native St. Louis, so he proposed joining the navy out of necessity. That began an over 22 years stint of active duty service as a radioman aboard both boomers and fast attack submarines. Kevin shares several stories that you won't want to miss, including the mash potato story!
Dec 11, 2020•43 min•Season 1Ep. 53
Jim Glunt grew up tough suburb of Pittsburgh, Pa where the smoke from the steel mills blocked his view of the night sky. He had to grow up quick also and began working at the age of 9. He had to help his Dad, a steel mill worker, put food on the table for Jim sisters and him. Joining the military seemed like a way out and he took it. He got his first airplane ride and his first view of the ocean. He served onboard the USS Groton as a machinist mate (nuclear trained) and he also became a diver, w...
Apr 30, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Wood Frampton grew up around the enlisted club on base where his Dad was a supply officer. He’d have french fries and watch the sailors get into fights. But that didn’t deter him from signing up for the Navy after a stint in the Coast Guard. He eventually became a missile tech, operating the C-4 missile launching system for Trident subs. He learned a lot from his 16 years in the Navy and is thinking of retiring to the Philippines with his new wife. He lived there as a child and thought he would ...
Mar 26, 2020•29 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Greg started his military career in the 8th grade (crazy story) and continued over several decades until he retired as a Chief Culinary Specialist. Now he teaches High School kids how to cook! Listen to this episode chocked full of the challenges of cooking on a round-hulled constantly diving and rising killer of the deep!
Mar 13, 2020•35 min•Season 1Ep. 51
PJ Clarke made a rash decision to join the submarine service. He was promised that the galley was open 24/7. That was enough to get him to volunteer. Serving on the Snook and the Billfish, his career spanned 9 years and included West Pacs and spec ops that would make Tom Clancy’s novels look tame. He put in the time and effort to get qualified in submarines and learned what he could accomplish anything he put his mind to.
Nov 10, 2018•37 min•Season 1Ep. 50
Rob Tiffany grew up in West Texas and set off to become a Navy pilot after seeing Top Gun. Of course, that didn’t work out, but he found the submarine service and had some great mentors. He ended serving on the USS John Marshal that was outfitted to serve as a seal delivery submarine. Rob talks about his seal friends and the rest of his career. Rob got into computer programming and ended up finding work in several high tech startups. Currently, he is serving as Chief Technology Officer for Hitac...
May 30, 2018•48 min•Season 1Ep. 49
David grew up on the West Coast of Scotland and was surrounded by water. His Mom said he always talked about joining the Navy, but he doesn’t remember why. He joined as an Artificer Apprentice in 1983. This position was created back in the Victorian Era as the amount of technical work required on ships increased. David learned the book information and then he learned from a salty guy that he didn’t know it all. From then on, David’s real education began. David did some “sneaky” patrols and event...
Sep 18, 2017•41 min•Season 1Ep. 48
Dan Eddinger grew up on a farm in eastern Ohio. He played in the woods a lot and really didn’t have a plan after high school. He did fall in love with his high school sweetheart and decided to join the Navy (and he kinda forgot to tell his girlfriend). But all was forgiven (they got married and still are married today), and they began their nuclear Navy, submarine career together. Apparently Dan had what it took to become an officer and 20 years later, he retired. After several technical and lea...
Sep 14, 2017•53 min•Season 1Ep. 47
Neil Midkiff got a tour of the USS Iowa when he lived in Rio de Janeiro as a child from the Naval Attache, Captain Andrews. At that point his mind was set, get in the Naval Academy and become a naval officer. While in the academy, he saw a picture that showed Captain Gilmore order his sub to submerge when they came under fire, even though he knew it meant his death. Neil was assigned to the USS Jack, SSN 650, and an incident in the Mediterranean when they were trailing a Russian submarine that c...
Aug 31, 2017•40 min•Season 1Ep. 46
Matt Tate grew up in the mountains of West Virginia and landed a job at the Greenbrier as a caddy by the age of 12 (he lied about his age). After doing that for a while and trying college, he joined the Navy. He barely passed the nuclear power aptitude test and eventually ended up with Bill Nowicki in the same Nuclear Power school class. Matt recalls some tough nights of studying and some fun when Bill decided to create a character called Reactor Dan. Matt went on to get married and stayed in th...
Feb 27, 2017•45 min•Season 1Ep. 45
Hector Rodriguez thinks everything happens for a reason. He grew up in East Oakland, California in a rough neighborhood. He loved sports so he played basketball and dreamed of playing professional sports. He was always bored in school and daydreamed his way to college. His parents payed for him to sit in the cafeteria and BS with his friends. At 22 things changed and he headed to the mall and found the Navy recruiter and was picking his jobs when the Twin Towers we’re hit on 9/11/2001. He ended ...
Dec 30, 2016•48 min•Season 1Ep. 44
*FOR MATURE AUDIENCES* Lee Ellis grew up on a farm in rural Georgia, but when he saw an airplane, everything changed. Even as a child, he longed to have control of the skies. After going to the University of Georgia, he trained to become a pilot and ended up going to Vietnam. He was captured by the Vietnamese after being shot down and spent many years in a Vietnamese prison camp. Lee tells the story of his time in captivity and what he learned about leadership and his new book, Engage with Honor...
Dec 29, 2016•42 min•Season 1Ep. 43
Stu Hubbard is the son of a Navy Mustang and became one himself. At the age of 17, he approached his Mom and Dad about enlisting which started his 20-year adventure in the Navy. Starting as a destroyer Sonarman he quickly learned that submarines were the place to be. He went from submarines to the Navy Medical Service Corps, finally serving the U.S. Marines. It wasn’t a straight path – but what a great ride. Stu and his Dad Stu and Glen Stu gets Dolphins Tacked-on Stu in a bunker President Bush ...
Jun 17, 2016•43 min•Season 1Ep. 42
Michael Goldstein grew up in Cleveland Heights, OH and was fascinated by submarines. He won a science fair contest at the age of 14 and was invited to New London to a special tour (see below). I let him tell you the rest of his story. I dropped out of college after three years in 1966 and enlisted in the Navy, although the Army offered me a commission as a 2nd LT in the infantry. Note the year for my obvious choice. I went to Great Lakes the day after Thanksgiving, entering as an E-3, and spent ...
Dec 01, 2015•41 min•Season 1Ep. 41
Listen up bubbleheads! Shannon Cason is an award winning storyteller and he tells his backstory and explains his motivation to share his life on stage. www.shannoncason.com Shannon Cason on Snap Judgment Homemade Stories on iTunes...
Nov 15, 2015•32 min•Season 1Ep. 40
Tim Sullivan was an outlier. He went against his parent’s wishes and joined the Navy on a whim. He became a striker, which means he started painting the boat. In fact he painted his name on the fairwater plane and really made a name for himself. Checkout Tim’s book on Amazon! Hot Run by T. Steven Sullivan Tim Sullivan Diver Let’s get together! Tim and his family today...
Aug 27, 2015•31 min•Season 1Ep. 39
Tom Conlon was born and raised in the garden state of New Jersey. As a boy, submarine TV shows excited him so he joined the sub service when he was old enough. While never good in school, Tom found he loved learning from his shipmates. He served as a torpedoman aboard the USS James K. Polk and the Francis Scott Key and was discharged in 1973 after 7 years of service. After the Navy, he continued to learn and take as many classes as his employer, the US Postal Service would allow. He also wanted ...
Jan 11, 2015•32 min•Season 1Ep. 38
Andrew Fletcher went three years in college and freaked out when he had $5,000 in debt. He ended up joining the Navy and trained as a Sonarman, one of the most important jobs on the boat (read Hunt for Red October if you don’t believe me). Andrew discusses why surface ships ARE targets for submarines and some cool stuff you may not know about the noisy ocean. I know you will enjoy this episode! Fun on liberty. Relaxed and ready Badass sonarmen...
Dec 18, 2014•39 min•Season 1Ep. 37
Nancy Yockey Bonar became fascinated with submarines thanks to her brother, Captain Harry Yockey. You’ll love Nancy’s explanation of submarine living is like when compared to a 3 bedroom house with 135 house guests! Tee Shirt to help the show and look cool doing it. Nancy Yockey Bonar Getting underway with number 10 cans Some of Harry Yockey’s exploits. Captain Harry Yockey...
Dec 05, 2014•38 min•Season 1Ep. 36
Bill provides some information on upcoming episodes and new initiative to help vets! Transitioning Vets Checkout some funny previous episodes: Clayton Wetzel, Surviving on Popcorn Jody Durham, Billion Dollar Boat Driver Rory Buchanan, Grapefruit Fighter Mike Reed, Pulling a String Bob Burchfield, Hawaiian Special Enjoy!
Nov 21, 2014•4 min•Season 1Ep. 35
Ken Westhaver grew up in the tough streets of South Boston. He wanted to be on a submarine so bad he could feel it. Thrown aboard the Minneapolis / St. Paul was the beginning of a career that took him to the Constitution (Old Ironsides), a tank and finally to the Boston Police where he currently serves as a detective. Enjoy this fun filled interview. One of Boston’s finests! Proudly displaying his dolphins! ‘;...
Nov 13, 2014•40 min•Season 1Ep. 34
