III 

Calendar No. 611 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 634 

Commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift and honoring 

the veterans of Operation Vittles. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2018 

Mr. RISCH (for himself, Mrs. SHAHEEN, and Mr. JOHNSON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

OCTOBER 1 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 28), 2018 

Reported by Mr. CORKER, without amendment and with an amendment to the 

preamble 

[Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic] 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift 

and honoring the veterans of Operation Vittles. 

Whereas in the spring of 1948, Berlin was isolated within the 

Soviet occupation zone, and there were only 35 days’ 

worth of food and 45 days’ worth of coal remaining for 

the city; 

Whereas military planners in the United States and the 

United Kingdom determined that— 


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(1) 1,534 tons of flour, wheat, fish, milk, and other 

food items would be required daily to feed the 2,000,000 

residents of Berlin; and 

(2) 3,475 tons of coal and gasoline would be required daily to keep the city of Berlin heated and powered; 

Whereas, on June 1, 1948, the United States Air Force created the Military Air Transport Service, the predecessor 

to the Air Mobility Command, to organize and conduct 

airlift missions; 

Whereas, on June 26, 1948, Operation Vittles began when 32 

C–47 Dakotas of the United States Air Force departed 

West Germany for Berlin hauling 80 tons of cargo; 

Whereas the first British aircraft involved in Operation 

Vittles launched on June 28, 1948; 

Whereas Major General William H. Tunner, a veteran of the 

aerial supply line over the Himalayas during World War 

II, took command of Operation Vittles on July 28, 1948; 

Whereas Major General Tunner pioneered many new and innovative tactics and procedures for the airlift, including 

creating air corridors for ingress and egress, staggering 

the altitudes at which aircraft flew, and implementing instrument flight rules that allowed aircraft to land as frequently as every 3 minutes; 

Whereas one pilot, 1st Lieutenant Gail S. Halvorsen, who became known as the ‘‘Candy Bomber’’, initiated Operation 

Little Vittles to bring hope to the children of Berlin by 

dropping handkerchief parachutes containing chocolate 

and chewing gum as a symbol of the goodwill of the 

United States; 


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Whereas Operation Little Vittles ultimately dropped more 

than 3 tons of candy in more than 250,000 miniature 

parachutes; 

Whereas, on Easter Sunday, April 17, 1949, airlifters 

reached the pinnacle of Operation Vittles by delivering 

13,000 tons of cargo, including the equivalent of 600 

railroad cars full of coal, and setting the record for tonnage of cargo delivered in a single day during the Berlin 

Airlift; 

Whereas 39 British airmen and 31 American airmen made 

the ultimate sacrifice during the Berlin Airlift and 8 

British aircraft and 17 American aircraft were lost; 

Whereas airlifters delivered more than 2,300,000 tons of food 

and supplies during 278,228 total flights into Berlin; 

Whereas the Soviet Union was forced to lift the blockade of 

Berlin in light of the success of the 15-month airlift operation; 

Whereas the Berlin Airlift marked the first use of airpower 

to provide hope and humanitarian assistance and to win 

a strategic victory against enemy aggression and intimidation; 

Whereas the enormous effort and cooperation of the Berlin 

Airlift helped overcome years of animosity between the 

United States and Germany and laid the foundation for 

a deep and lasting friendship between the people of the 

two countries; and 

Whereas today Germany is one of the closest and strongest 

allies of the United States in Europe, based on the close 

and vital relationship of the two countries as friends, 

trading partners, and allies sharing common values and 


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institutions that promote stability in political, economic, 

and security matters: Now, therefore, be it 

Whereas, in late June 1948, West Berlin was isolated within 

the Soviet occupation zone, and there were only 35 days’ 

worth of food and 45 days’ worth of coal remaining for the 

city; 

Whereas military planners in the United States and the 

United Kingdom initially determined that— 

(1) 1,534 tons of flour, wheat, fish, milk, and other 

food items would be required daily to feed the more than 

2,000,000 residents of West Berlin; and 

(2) 3,475 tons of coal and gasoline would be required 

daily to keep West Berlin heated and powered; 

Whereas, on June 1, 1948, the fledgling United States Air 

Force created the Military Air Transport Service, the 

predecessor to the Air Mobility Command, to organize and 

conduct airlift missions; 

Whereas, on June 26, 1948, Operation Vittles began when 32 

Douglas C–47 Skytrains of the United States Air Force departed from bases in southwest Germany to West Berlin 

hauling 80 tons of cargo; 

Whereas the first British aircraft operating under ‘‘Operation 

Plainfare’’ launched on June 28, 1948, from bases in 

northwest Germany; 

Whereas Major General William H. Tunner, a veteran of the 

successful aerial supply line over the Himalayas during 

World War II, took command of Operation Vittles on July 

28, 1948; 

Whereas Major General Tunner pioneered many new and innovative tactics and procedures for the airlift, including 

creating air corridors for ingress and egress, staggering the 


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altitudes at which aircraft flew, and implementing mandatory instrument flight rules that allowed aircraft to land 

as frequently as every 3 minutes; 

Whereas one pilot, 1st Lieutenant Gail S. Halvorsen, who became known as the ‘‘Candy Bomber’’, initiated ‘‘Operation 

Little Vittles’’ to bring hope to the children of Berlin by 

dropping handkerchief parachutes containing chocolate 

and chewing gum as a symbol of the goodwill of the United 

States; 

Whereas Operation Little Vittles ultimately dropped more than 

23 tons of candy in more than 250,000 miniature parachutes; 

Whereas, during the ‘‘Easter Parade’’ on Easter Sunday, April 

17, 1949, airlifters reached the pinnacle of Operation 

Vittles by delivering 12,940 tons of cargo, including the 

equivalent of 600 railroad cars full of coal, and setting the 

record for tonnage of cargo delivered in a single day during the Berlin Airlift; 

Whereas the unprecedented size and scope of the Berlin Airlift 

also made heavy and unforeseen demands on United States 

Army personnel in Germany, including the United States 

Army Airlift Support Command; 

Whereas 39 British airmen and civilians, 21 United States 

airmen and civilians, and 14 German citizens made the 

ultimate sacrifice during the Berlin Airlift, 

Whereas airlifters delivered 2,325,809 tons of food and supplies 

during 277,569 total flights into West Berlin; 

Whereas the Soviet Union was forced to lift the blockade of 

West Berlin on May 12, 1949, in light of the success of the 

airlift; 


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Whereas the Berlin Airlift marked the first use of airpower to 

provide hope and humanitarian assistance and to win a 

strategic victory against enemy aggression and intimidation; 

Whereas the enormous effort and cooperation of the Berlin Airlift helped overcome years of animosity between the United 

States and Germany and laid the foundation for a deep 

and lasting friendship between the people of the two countries; and 

Whereas today Germany is one of the United States’ closest 

and strongest allies in Europe, based on our close and 

vital relationship as friends, trading partners, and allies 

sharing common values and institutions to promote stability—politically, economically, and in security matters: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) recognizes the 70th anniversary of the Ber3 lin Airlift, the largest and longest running humani4 tarian airlift operation in history; 

5 (2) honors the service and sacrifice of the men 

6 and women who participated in and supported the 

7 Berlin Airlift; 

8 (3) applauds the men and women of the Air 

9 Mobility Command of the United States Air Force, 

10 who, in keeping with the best traditions of the Ber11 lin Airlift, still work diligently to provide hope, save 

12 lives, and deliver freedom around the world in supVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:01 Oct 02, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR634.RS SR634

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1 port of the foreign policy objectives of the United 

2 States; and 

3 (4) commends the close friendship forged be4 tween the people of the United States and Germany 

5 through the Berlin Airlift, which helps sustain the 

6 transatlantic alliance to this day. 


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Calendar No. 611 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 634 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Berlin 

O

Vittles. Airlift and honoring the veterans of Operation 

CTOBER 1 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 28), 2018 

Reported without amendment and with an amendment to 

the preamble 


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