DOOM 34: The 35-Hour Mission That Helped Launch Desert Storm
Colonel Trey Morriss, U.S. Air Force (Ret.) is a former B-52 aviator, commander, and decorated combat veteran who served more than 31 years in support of the legendary Eighth Air Force. He joins Marcus and Melanie in the Team Never Quit podcast studio today. Colonel Morriss, a key figure in one of the most daring missions in modern military aviation, Trey was part of the record-setting opening strike of Desert Storm—the longest combat sortie in history at the time. After 9/11, he went on to fly 32 combat missions over Afghanistan and Iraq.

In this week’s episode, Trey takes us inside Operation Senior Surprise, the highly classified 35-hour, 14,000-mile mission—nicknamed Secret Squirrel—that helped launch Operation Desert Storm. Before the first bombs ever hit Iraq in 1991, seven B-52s quietly lifted off from Louisiana carrying the weight of a mission so secret most of the crews hadn’t even known it existed until months earlier.

What followed was one of the most extraordinary combat operations ever attempted: the first combat use of GPS-guided cruise missiles, a nonstop endurance test of grit and discipline, and a no-fail mission filled with life-or-death challenges. Trey recounts losing an engine minutes after takeoff, a near midair collision during night aerial refueling, and a dangerously low-fuel return across the Mediterranean.

But this conversation is about more than aviation history. It’s about leadership under pressure, trust in the cockpit, accountability when everything is on the line, and the responsibility of earning the right to come home. Trey also reflects on the deeper meaning behind service and honoring those who have “gone west.”

If you’re into B-52 bombers, Desert Storm, military aviation, leadership under stress, and stories of endurance against the odds, this is an episode you do not want to miss.

In this episode you will hear:

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