Colonel Edward Vaughan Coggins, USAF (ret.) “received an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., graduating in 1953. The “Cougar” (his call sign) was a fighter pilot for most of his 26 years in the Air Force, serving two combat tours in Vietnam and commanding the 354th Tactical Fighter Squadron from 1971-1973. Ed retired in 1979 at the rank of colonel.  In civilian life, Ed worked as a computer and management consultant, and as a professor of military history at the American Military University.  Colonel Edward Vaughan Coggins died in 2008.  He is the author of Virginian in Blue: Maj. Gen. George H. “Old Pap” Thomas (The Best General in the Civil War) and Wings That Stay On.

On reader of Wings That Stay On said, it “is a well written book about the history of aircraft fighter planes and the role they have played in all of the military conflicts that have taken place since the first World War. Col. Coggins has researched and presented the reader with his assessment of how the fighter plane has been a major factor in the outcome of wars, and how they will affect our future as well. His knowledge and background has been revealed in the way he has presented this subject so that even a non pilot can understand the technical and professional side of flight. He covers every military engagement with logical observations and interesting and provocative conclusions. He has made a strong case for the next decade of the 21st century by strongly promoting the F-22 Fighter for the United States. His writing has a style that keeps the reader interested in history by including reflections on the people who have been part of the development. He describes some of his missions as a way to highlight this dangerous profession. I am sure that pilots and non-pilots will like this book. It is well documented with photographs of every type of fighter plane. The author has seen a need to present this material so that the readers will have gained insight into what may not have been obvious. They will also be rewarded by taking the time to understand and reflect on the book. As a witness to most of these military engagements, as an interested non-pilot, I can now relate to them much better: how they started, when the conditions and results changed, and some of the factors that determined the outcome. Col. Coggins has presented his subject in a way that is unique to the world of aviation.”