GENERAL WILLIAM H. TUNNER AND THE BERLIN AIRLIFT essays

GENERAL WILLIAM H. TUNNER AND THE BERLIN AIRLIFT essays Lieutenant General William H. Tunner single-handedly revolutionized military transport operations of the United States Air Force. His spanned thirty years and included distinguished service in World War II and His greatest contribution to wartime military transport operations were in logistics and mission safety, as well as for his crucial role in re- across enemy territory in Operation "Hump" in 1944. A native of Elizabeth, New Jersey, Tunner graduated from the United Military Academy in 1928, a commissioned second lieutenant, and then in the Advanced Flying School at Kelly Field in Texas. (1) He began as a the Ferrying Command, which grew to become the Air Transport Command under leadership, and later expanded to incorporate naval transport operations as While General Tunner distinguished himself during wartime, he is as remembered for directing a peacetime operation to supply the civilian Berlinthen the world's fifth largest city of 2.5 million inhabitantscompletely by air during the Berlin Airlift of 1948 as for his heroism in battle.(3) At the close of World War II in Europe in the Spring of 1945, Germany jointly occupied by the United States, Britain and France in alliance with forces, administrated by a four-member coalition as an interim government 1. Lieutenant William H. Tunner: A Brief Biography (1997) 2. USAF Museum On-line. (1998) General William H. Tunner. 3. Lieutenant William H. Tunner: A Brief Biography (1997) post-war reconstruction of Germany. Tensions between the three Western and the Soviets arose as a function of emerging differences in their for post-war Germany, culminating in 1948, when Stalin completely cut off and electricity to Berlin, claiming they were due to technical problems. June 24th, Soviet forces cut off all Western access to the city of Berlin, heart of the Sov...