Episode 129 - Sky King: The Last Flight

When a stolen plane became a mirror for America’s silent crisis in men’s mental health.

This episode isn’t about a plane theft. It’s about the reality that men are dying in silence, and society’s response is to hand them a pamphlet and hope they don’t bother us again. The “Sky King” wasn’t just one man’s story… he’s the tip of an iceberg we refuse to see.

Most people steal a plane to escape something. Richard Russell stole a plane to escape himself. And while the headlines called him a thief, I call him a warning — a warning about what happens when we keep telling men to ‘man up’ instead of ‘speak up.

Yeah — and here’s the part no one wants to admit: if Richard had been a woman, we’d have seen documentaries, mental health campaigns, and candlelight vigils by now. But because he was a man, his pain became a meme. His death became entertainment.

This episode isn’t about a plane theft. It’s about the reality that men are dying in silence — and society’s response is to hand them a pamphlet and hope they don’t bother us again.

The ‘Sky King’ wasn’t just one man’s story… he’s the tip of an iceberg we refuse to see. And if we don’t start talking, more men are going to crash without ever sending a mayday.