Who is Johnny Bravo from the nonfiction book, Leaders Eat Last?

The A-10 pilot referred to as Johnny Bravo hovered above thick cloud cover over Afghanistan on a dark night in August 2002. His fellow soldiers were targeting a high value target and Johnny Bravo didn’t just want to hang back; he wanted to help. To assess how his fellow soldiers were faring he took the unprecedented maneuver of dropping down below the thick clouds to see how he could help.

As soon as he broke through he heard the transmission over the radio, “Troops in contact,” meaning that the soldiers on the ground were engaged in a conflict with target forces. He locked his guns on a point from which enemy fire was emanating. He held the trigger down on his Gatling gun and fired. After a breathless few minutes of radio silence, he heard excited voices saying, “Good hits! Good hits!”

That night there were no American casualties.

Johnny Bravo received no reward for his bravery and didn’t want any. The thanks from the troops that he helped were enough for him. Unlike many in corporate settings who want recognition from above, Johnny wasn’t motivated for praise from his superiors. He did what he did for one reason… those soldiers on the ground would have done it for him.