. Military Space News .
SUPERPOWERS
US 'candy bomber' back in Berlin after 70 years
By Ryland JAMES
Berlin (AFP) May 12, 2019

When in 1948 US bombers started dropping tiny, improvised parachutes loaded with sweets into Berlin during the Soviet blockade, one little German girl wrote to complain.

Mercedes Wild, now 78, recalled how she protested that the constant drone of airlift planes disturbed her chickens -- and during the Soviet blockade of West Berlin, eggs were a valuable commodity.

Then Gail Halvorsen, the US pilot who dreamed up the candy drops, wrote back, enclosing sticks of chewing gum and a lollipop with his letter.

His gesture sparked a long-lasting friendship between Halvorsen, Wild and their families which mirrored the post-World War II German-American relationship, she told AFP.

"It wasn't the sweets that impressed me, it was the letter," she said. "I grew up fatherless, like a lot of (German) children at that time, so knowing that someone outside of Berlin was thinking of me gave me hope."

"Candy bomber" Halvorsen insists that the real heroes of the Berlin Airlift -- the mammoth logistical operation to air-drop supplies into West Berlin after the Soviet Union blockaded it -- were inside the city.

"The heroes of the Berlin Airlift were not the pilots, the heroes were the Germans -- the parents and children on the ground," said the 98-year-old American veteran, calling them "the stalwarts of the confrontation with the Soviet Union".

The frail ex-pilot was back at Berlin's former Tempelhof airport, now a public park, for a commemoration of the daring aviation feat by western Allies in 1948-49, officially known as 'Operation Vittles'.

- 'Uncle Wiggly Wings' -

Tens of thousands of people flocked to the festivities to the 70th anniversary of the end of the 15-month Soviet blockade.

The airlift was "the outstretched hand of the former war enemies to Germany," Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen at a ceremony on the eve of the commemoration.

It was "an act of resistance against dictatorship" and "an act of trust-building" that helped Germany's post-war democracy, she said.

Pilots flew supplies to West Berlin's 2.5 million people amid Cold War tensions in Germany's ruined capital, still reeling from the Second World War.

Operating almost non-stop and through a harsh German winter, the Airlift brought in more than two million tonnes of supplies on more than 277,000 flights, mainly into Tempelhof.

At least 78 US, British and German pilots and ground crew lost their lives in accidents in the air and on the ground, as the Allies delivered fuel and food to prevent Berlin's population from starving.

It was the first major salvo of the Cold War.

- 'Best ambassador' -

Halvorsen was the first American pilot to famously drop bundles of chocolate with handkerchief parachutes to children waiting below.

To signal that he was about to release the candy-laden parachutes, Halvorsen would dip his plane's wings, earning him the nickname "Uncle Wiggly Wings".

Halvorsen rose to the rank of colonel and eventually ended up commander of the airfield.

To honour the airman, the Berlin Braves, the city's baseball team, named their ground at Tempelhof "the Gail S Halvorsen Ballpark".

The veteran flew from his home in Utah to throw the honorary opening pitch on Saturday.

After handing out candy to local children, Halvorsen urged "future leaders" in both Germany "and America" to protect their freedom.

"I would exhort the young people to keep an open mind to know that some leaders will lead free people in the wrong direction," Halvorsen warned.

"Freedom is important and sometimes you have to fight for it."

The frail American is still a hero in the German capital, and Mercedes Wild still has Halvorsen's first letter to her in its original envelope.

"He became a father-figure for me," she said. "Our families have a special bond, and he's the best ambassador we could have for German-American friendship."


Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


SUPERPOWERS
Ukraine demands release of navy sailors held by Russia
Berlin (AFP) May 10, 2019
Ukraine on Friday demanded the release of 24 sailors and three naval vessels seized by Russia last November, in a plea to an international tribunal set to rule on the incident. The case focuses on the fate of the captured sailors, who were manning three Ukrainian vessels off Russian annexed Crimea when Russian ships fired on and seized their boats. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, in the German city of Hamburg, said it would announce its decision on May 25. Moscow has said ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

SUPERPOWERS
Patriot system, transport ship sent to Middle East as Iran tensions rise

State Department approves $2.7B Patriot system sale to UAE

Turkey to buy Russian missiles despite US 'threats'

US Air Force completes successful shoot down of air-launched missiles

SUPERPOWERS
F-35C jets to be armed with hypersonic cruise missiles

Raytheon to provide U.S. Marines with Naval Strike Force Missile

Missile contracts surge as US exits arms treaty: study

Raytheon receives $419 million for Sidewinder missiles, parts

SUPERPOWERS
Obstacles to overcome before operating fleets of drones becomes reality

Ascent AeroSystems Announces New Industrial Grade Drone and Launch Customer

Iris Automation offers turnkey collision-avoidance solution for commercial drones

Boeing's MQ-25 refueling drone moved to air base for flight testing

SUPERPOWERS
Next AEHF satellite shipped to Cape Canaveral for June launch

Airbus and Thales Alenia Space to build two SpainSAT NG satellites

Boeing awarded $605M for Air Force's 11th WGS comms satellite

SLAC develops novel compact antenna for communicating where radios fail

SUPERPOWERS
Expediting Software Certification for Military Systems, Platforms

With Insights from Integration Exercise, SubT Challenge Competitors Prepare for Tunnel Circuit

Marines to field enhanced handheld targeting system later this year

Marines to replace LAV with new armored vehicle in next decade

SUPERPOWERS
France confirms contested arms shipment to Saudi Arabia

Shanahan: Trump chooses a business manager for defense chief

Yemen war: breaking point in EU arms sales to Gulf?

Macron defends Saudi arms sales with new shipment in focus

SUPERPOWERS
US-China standoff heralds risky shake-up of global order: analysts

Ukraine demands release of navy sailors held by Russia

U.S., NATO allies start Formidable Shield exercise in Scotland

Bolsonaro cancels New York gala trip as sponsors withdraw

SUPERPOWERS
Monitoring the lifecycle of tiny catalyst nanoparticles

Fast and selective optical heating for functional nanomagnetic metamaterials

2D gold quantum dots are atomically tunable with nanotubes

Harnessing microorganisms for smart microsystems









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.