Wolfgang W. E. Samuel was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Air Force in 1960 and rose to the rank of Colonel. He flew his first operational missions during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, then flew over a hundred dangerous reconnaissance missions during the Cold War. He flew combat during the Vietnam War and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross three times and multiple Air Medals. He is the author of German Boy: A Refugee's Story; I Always Wanted to Fly: America's Cold War Airmen; The War of Our Childhood: Memories of World War II; American Raiders: The Race to Capture the Luftwaffe's Secrets; Coming to Colorado: A Young Immigrant's Journey to Become an American Flyer; and In Defense of Freedom: Stories of Courage and Sacrifice of World War II Army Air Forces Flyers, all published by University Press of Mississippi.