Michael “O2” Harvey: Turning a Passion for Flying into Cutting-Edge Warfighter Training

When Michael “O2” Harvey was around eight years old, his uncle — a newly minted private pilot — flew back home and took O2’s father up for a spin. In a playful act of revenge for childhood bullying he received as the youngest child, O2’s uncle acted like the plane was going down and they had to make an emergency landing.

“My dad was screaming and hollering. When they landed, my dad swore he would never get in the plane again,” remembers O2. “I was so excited. I wanted to get in the plane, but they said I was too young.”

Still, the aviation pictures and cockpit posters adorning his uncle’s bedroom walls made a deep impression on the young O2. “When I would go to my grandma’s house, I’d go sit in his room and just look at all those pictures. I knew I wanted to fly,” he says.

Growing up in Gary, Indiana, a steel-town community, O2 was the oldest of three children in a family that valued education and hard work. His mother was a stay-at-home mom before she resumed her career as a computer science teacher once the kids were older.

His father, a steel mill electrician, was his greatest role model. “He was a hard worker and whatever he wanted to do, he did it,” O2 says. “He was a jack of all trades — and a master of them too. I learned a lot from him when it comes to workmanship, attention to detail, and being my best.”

As O2 progressed through junior high and high school, he found he was interested in math and “building stuff.” He was encouraged to go into engineering, a career path he embraced, though he initially wasn’t sure what kind of engineer he wanted to become.

O2’s interest in aviation soon merged with his academic interests and he decided to pursue aerospace engineering. These dreams were further fueled by learning about pioneering Black astronauts in history class, including Guion Bluford, Ronald McNair, General Charles Bolden, and Captain Winston Scott. “I thought if I could become an aerospace engineer and fly, and that would be my track to becoming an astronaut,” he says.

A recruiter from West Point visited O2’s high school and pointed out the advantages of attending a military academy: no cost, graduation as an officer, and walking into a ready-made, good-paying job. O2 eagerly filled out an interest card for West Point but didn’t hear anything back.

Then an administration officer from the U.S. Naval Academy called, asking if he might be interested in attending. Between his junior and senior year, O2 attended in the Academy’s Summer Seminar Program. He came home knowing it was his top choice, even as the class valedictorian with plenty of other schools to choose from.

O2 earned his degree in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and commissioned into the U.S. Navy in May 1998. The path forward looked clear. But as his flight training began, the first twist of his career happened.

O2 was first selected as a pilot and spent a short time in Air Force training, but did not complete training after being told his landings were “too hard” according to Air Force standards.

He was able to enter the Naval Flight Officer (NFO) program. “Everything happens for a reason. The Air Force said my landings were too hard, but during my pilot appreciation familiarization flights I landed the T-34 the same way I landed the T-37 when I was with the Air Force and my instructor said that’s exactly how you’re supposed to land on a ship, you stick it,” O2 says.

After earning his NFO wings, O2 moved to San Diego in 2001 to fly the S-3B Viking, a multi-mission aircraft used for from Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Surface Combatant Surveillance and Targeting (SSC) and aerial refueling. Deploying in 2003 during the Second Iraq War, O2’s crew made history as the first and only S-3B team ever to employ a live weapon during combat — a laser-guided Maverick missile. “That was a huge moment for us, and for the community,” O2 says.

When the Viking was phased out, O2 transitioned to the F/A-18 Super Hornet as a Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) and to the high-stakes environment of tactical jets. He joined VFA-2, the “Bullets,” and moved his family from San Diego to Lemoore, California.

Flying the Super Hornet came with a major change in lifestyle. “Tactical training required constantly being away from home, and I was away the good majority of my tours often leaving my wife to play both of mom and dad,” O2 says.

“Once, we were on a short trip and my kids asked, ‘Dad, remember when we went to this place?’ And we realized, no, I don’t because I wasn’t there. That stuck with me. My wife was creating those memories without me in an effort to keep our kids occupied while I was gone.”

After finishing his department head tour, at VFA-154, O2 decided he needed to find a way to spend more time with his family. An overseas assignment seemed like a good way to make that happen, so he accepted a position with the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. He joined their Command Battle Staff as the fast-jet subject matter expert.

“The Royal Navy was standing up their Joint Strike Fighter squadrons and building the new Queen Elizabeth-class carriers,” says O2. “My job was to help the Royal Navy understand the U.S. Carrier Airwing construct — how it functioned, integrated with the carrier and the Strike Group and create a version of an airwing applicable for their air group.

During his tour, O2 advised on air operations, helped refine training models, and even deployed with Royal Navy forces during Operation Enduring Freedom, supporting counter-narcotics and counter-insurgency missions near the Horn of Africa. The tour “showed me how much influence the U.S. military has,” he says. “When we move, our allies move. We lead the way.”

Living in England also shaped his family in ways he didn’t expect. His kids attended British schools, and — much to his surprise — even picked up British accents. When schools were out, the military allowed parents to spend time with their families, so O2 used those breaks to take his family across Europe. He enjoyed exposing his kids to diverse cultures and languages. “It helped build them into what they are today,” he says.

Returning stateside in 2015, O2 served as Air Operations Officer aboard the USS George H.W. Bush until 2017. He worked closely with the air traffic controllers ensuring safe and expeditious air operations around the carrier.

His final naval assignment in 2017 moved O2 into the forefront: the Commander, Operational Test and Evaluation Force (COMOPTEVFOR) in Norfolk, Virginia. There, he oversaw testing of new aircraft, systems, and weapons.

“Although I was out of the cockpit, as an active-duty officer, I could still advocate for my brothers and sisters in arms,” O2 says. “I was fortunate to work with some of the latest high-end weapons system programs shaping the direction of operational tests to ensure the fleet was receiving quality proven products. Our reports from these tests would subsequently end up in Congress for them to decide whether or not funding should continue, so it was pretty important.”

After 23 years of uniformed service, O2 officially retired in May 2021, but only briefly. He took time to think what came next.

Having collaborated with contractors at COMOPTEVFOR, O2 saw firsthand the instability involved in contracting. He decided he didn’t want that, so he tried a role at Amazon as Operations Manager. After a couple of years, he realized the long hours and stress weren’t how he wanted to spend the rest of his career.

As he considered where to go next, O2 got a call from an old squadron-mate, Micah “Snoop” Lenox, who encouraged him to join 2 Circle. O2’s hesitation wasn’t about the work; it was the unpredictability of contracting. “I told Micah I just can’t deal with uncertainty. He said, ‘This company’s different. We take care of our people, we’re about the family, we’re at the forefront in tactics & training, and we do a lot of cool things,’” O2 recalls.

And he was right. O2 could see immediately that 2 Circle carried a reputation for quality and professionalism. “There was always a seat at the table when we were in the room,” says O2. Along with that, O2 witnessed how 2 Circle took care of their people. When his onboarding mentor explained how his team was in between contracts, but the company was still going to pay them their wages. “That let me know right away this company does really care about its people and makes sure they are taken care of,” says O2.

Now Senior Warfare Analyst for Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) Training, O2 helps provide ways for live aircraft and virtual simulators to train in the same environment. His team supports Program Management Aviation (PMA) 205, the Naval Aviation Training Systems and Ranges Program Office.

“Today’s weapon systems and aircraft are so advanced, and expensive, it can sometime be challenging to get enough aircraft to participate in one event making it difficult to train how we would actually fight,” he says.

“We’re building a network infrastructure that allows live Navy and Marine Corps aircraft to interact with pilots flying in simulators in a virtual environment. The ground controller can then add in constructive entities to make a problem as benign or as complex as needed. Not only is it more cost effective but the interoperability between live and virtual allows pilots to receive effective training — and a lot more. Eventually, the goal is for this to become an inter-service norm and necessity for training as we continue to build next-generation aircraft.”

What sets O2’s work apart is how he’s helping facilitate: live aircraft, simulators, and computer-generated forces training together inside one, secure battle space. “A feature known to many called Link-Inject-to-Live (LITL),” he explains. “Someone in a simulator or behind a computer can connect to a live aircraft airborne. They do tactics. They fight. They run missions.” The result is a closed-loop training environment that feels real without the cost and risk.

Today, the network already lets E-2 Hawkeyes, F/A-18 Super Hornets, and EA-18G Growlers operate in the same environment. Next to come online with be MH-60R and eventually P-8s and the Joint Strike Fighter. “We don’t fight in a silo — we fight together as one team, one unit,” explains O2. He sees LVC as a way to conduct large force exercises in a secure setting where tactics can be exercised, refined, and evaluated without exposing sensitive signals or burning unnecessary flight hours.

Another part of O2’s work is helping stakeholders see the value of investing in the infrastructure and reach. “When we talk to the flag officers, they’re all on board — they’re super excited,” he says. “Now it’s about getting the funding, building long-range networks, modernizing training ranges and using assets that can extend ranges so we can link the east coast to the west coast, and the west coast to Hawaii and beyond.”

One of O2’s favorite parts of working at 2 Circle is mentoring new employees. “When I joined the company, someone helped me, so now I help others. It’s not just about the job — it allows me to give back to the company and be part of the team to make us better,” O2 says.

Looking forward, O2 hopes to explore more leadership roles within 2 Circle, maybe even in another department. “I love what I do now, and if there’s opportunity to grow within our department or others, I want to grow and expand in that,” he says.