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Wolfgang W.E. Samuel | |
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 Wolfgang Samuel and son Charles at Forbes AFB, Kansas, in 1964 | |
| Nickname(s) | Wolf |
| Born | February 2, 1935 Strasburg, Germany |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/ |  United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 1960–1985 |
| Rank |  Colonel |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War Cold War |
| Awards | Distinguished Flying Cross Air Medal |
| Other work | Author |
Wolfgang W.E. Samuel (born February 2, 1935) is a German-born American writer and a veteran of the United States Air Force.
Born in what is now Poland, ten-year-old Samuel, along with his mother and sister, ran from his home town of Sagan (now Żagań in Poland) in 1945 as the Red Army approached. [1] As a Flüchtling (refugee), he underwent privation and re-settlement in the post-war years. [2] His mother was raped repeatedly, [3] and his grandfather was killed by German communists. [4] He describes how he and his mother eventually settled near a U.S. airbase in western Germany, where his mother met and married an American serviceman. [5]
After the family emigrated to the United States, Samuel attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business in 1960, and subsequently the National War College. [6] He served in the United States Air Force for 30 years, retiring with the rank of colonel in 1985. [6] He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal multiple times during his years of active duty. [6] As of 2008, he resided in Fairfax Station, Virginia. [6]
As of 2015, Samuel has published eight books. The first, German Boy: A Child in War, is a memoir detailing the war years and his post-war life as a refugee, and features a foreword by historian Stephen Ambrose. His second book, I Always Wanted to Fly: America's Cold War Airmen, is a compilation of oral histories of American aviators of the Cold War era. The War of Our Childhood: Memories of World War II, another oral history compilation, tells of twenty-seven Germans who experienced the war as children. American Raiders: The Race to Capture the Luftwaffe's Secrets, is an account of the efforts made by the United States military to acquire German military technology.
Glory Days: The Untold Story of the Men Who Flew the B-66 Destroyer into the Face of Fear recounts some of the adventures of the often unsung crews of the B-66, RB-66 and EB-66 aircraft. Watson's Whizzer's: Operation Lusty and the Race for Nazi Aviation Technology documents the United States' efforts to obtain German aeronautical breakthroughs at the end of World War II. His most recent work is In Defense of Freedom that describes the sacrifices of America's World War II Army Air Force flyers and their contributions to the Allied victory.
In the first Gulf of Sidra incident, 19 August 1981, two Libyan Su-22 Fitters fired upon two U.S. F-14 Tomcats and were subsequently shot down off the Libyan coast. Libya had claimed that the entire Gulf was their territory, at 32° 30′ N, with an exclusive 62-nautical-mile fishing zone, which Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi asserted as "The Line of Death" in 1973. Two further incidents occurred in the area in 1986 and in 1989.
The Jagdtiger is a German casemate-type heavy tank destroyer (Jagdpanzer) of World War II. It was built upon the slightly lengthened chassis of a Tiger II. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 186.
The Junkers Ju 290 was a large German, four-engine long-range transport, heavy bomber and maritime patrol aircraft used by the Luftwaffe late in World War II that had been developed from an earlier airliner.
The 4th Fighter Group was an American element of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force during World War II. The group was known as the Debden Eagles because it was created from the three Eagle Squadrons of the Royal Air Force: No. 71, No. 121 Squadron RAF, and No. 133 Squadron RAF. These squadrons became the 334th, 335th, and 336th Fighter Squadrons of the 4th Fighter Group based at RAF Debden. The group was the first fighter group to fly combat missions over German airspace, the first to escort bombers over Berlin, and the first selected to escort bombers on shuttle bombing runs landing in Russia. The group was credited with shooting down 1,016 German planes.
Operation LUSTY was the United States Army Air Forces' effort to capture and evaluate German aeronautical technology during and after World War II.
Herschel Harper "Herky" Green was a World War II flying ace in the United States Army Air Forces. Green was the leading ace of the Fifteenth Air Force, shooting down 18 enemy aircraft and destroying 10 more on the ground.
The Foster, Wikner Aircraft Company Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer formed in 1936.
Harry von Bülow-Bothkamp was a German fighter pilot notable for being one of the few two-war aces in history. After scoring six victories in World War I, he became a Luftwaffe ace in World War II, with 12 additional victories. Also he was a member of the National Socialist Flyers Corps with the rank of NSFK-Obergruppenführer.
USS Eastport was a steamer captured by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy as a convoy and patrol vessel on Confederate waterways.
Beth Israel Congregation is a Reform Jewish congregation located at 5315 Old Canton Road in Jackson, Mississippi, United States. Organized in 1860 by Jews of German background, it has always been, and remains, the only Jewish synagogue in Jackson. Beth Israel built the first synagogue in Mississippi in 1867, and, after it burned down, its 1874 replacement was at one time the oldest religious building in Jackson.
Red Tails is a 2012 American war film directed by Anthony Hemingway in his feature directorial debut, and starring Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr. The film is about the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) servicemen during World War II. The characters in the film are fictional, although based on real individuals. The film was produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and released by 20th Century Fox, and would be the last film Lucasfilm released before being purchased by The Walt Disney Company nine months later. This was Cuba Gooding Jr.'s first theatrically released film in five years since his starring role in 2007's Daddy Day Camp.
Robert Tharp (R.T.) Smith was an American World War II fighter pilot and ace, credited with 8.7, 8.9 or 9 Japanese aircraft while fighting with the American Volunteer Group.
Reed McKinley Chambers was a pioneer in the American Aviation industry, as a flying ace in World War I, as founder of an early airline, and as founder and chairman of America's first aviation insurance company.
Vũ Ngọc Đỉnh was a North Vietnamese MiG-21 fighter ace of the Vietnamese People's Air Force's. He flew with the 921st fighter regiment and tied for fourth place amongst Vietnam War fighter aces with six kills.
Nguyễn Đăng Kính was a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 pilot of the Vietnamese People's Air Force who flew with the 921st Fighter Regiment from 1965-1972, becoming a deputy commander of the newly established 927th FR from 1972-75, and tied for fourth place amongst Vietnam War fighter aces with six kills.
Kenneth Oscar Chilstrom was a United States Air Force officer, combat veteran, test pilot, and author. He was the first USAF pilot to fly the XP-86 Sabre, chief of fighter test at Wright Field, commandant of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, and program manager for the XF-108 Rapier. Chilstrom was a pilot in the first jet air race and delivered the first air mail by jet. He flew over eighty combat missions in the Italian Campaign of World War II and tested over twenty foreign models of German and Japanese fighters and bombers to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.
After World War II, there were many instances of air-to-air combat between the Soviet Union and the United States.
The Old Bold Pilots Association is a group of pilots and enthusiasts who meet weekly to enjoy breakfast and discuss their enthusiasm for aviation. The organization is notable for the diverse background of its members that includes civilians and veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Members have served in the United States military, the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force, Germany's Luftwaffe, and the Soviet Air Forces.
Thomas Jonathan Jackson Christian Jr. was a colonel in the United States Army Air Forces and commanding officer of the 361st Fighter Group during World War II. He was the great-grandson of American Civil War General Stonewall Jackson.
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