Jocko Podcast 540: Saved By The Corps. From A Path of Destruction, to Success. With Ben Ingram.
May 13, 2026
Ben Ingram, a former Marine crew chief turned entrepreneur and founder of Warriors In Need, recounts his turnaround from a troubled youth to military service and aviation life. He talks about boot camp transformation, combat deployments, aviation maintenance, tragic losses that inspired charity work, building a business to fund veterans, and scaling a program to train vets as licensed aircraft mechanics.
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Squadron Loss In Training Brings Home Risk Of Aviation
- Ben lost a fellow squadron crew chief, Pete Baz, in a 1993 training crash; the death underscored training risk and left Ben with Baz's gunner belt as a keepsake.
- The event made Ben realize even training carries lethal risk and affected him deeply.
Shipboard Crashes Haunted Ben And Triggered Lifelong Overtraining
- During a 1994 deployment the squadron lost a Harrier and later a Huey crashed into the sea; Ben describes the trauma of watching rescue efforts and the guilt of feeling he could have done more.
- He explains how those losses haunted him and shaped his lifelong overtraining response.
How Veterans Convert Crew Chief Time Into An A&P License
- Transitioning military maintainers to civilian A&P licenses is doable via Part 65 experience path; gather DD-214, training records, and get an FAA 8610-2 signoff.
- Ben used his crew-chief experience and FAA guidance to pass three written exams and practicals and obtain his A&P quickly.
