~ Hall of Heroes The Berlin Airlift Part 4: The Legecy All info and photos from this website.
Link to Part 1 Link to Part 2 Link to Part 3 | | THE AIRLIFT'S LEGACY The most obvious result of this confrontation was the 40-year Cold War with the Soviet Union, which ebbed with the construction of the Berlin Wall, and the Korean and Vietnam Conflicts. The US also forged a newfound friendship with Germany, its former foe, and established the Federal Republic of Germany as a result. In addition, the North Atlantic Treaty organization (NATO) was formed as a result of the crisis.
Less politically, our aircraft and airway system we enjoy today was developed and perfected as a result of the Berlin Airlift. Ground Controlled Approach or GCA was greatly improved as a necessity for the aircraft to land in Berlin, and our air traffic control system is a direct development of that technology. Loading procedures and maintenance procedures are greatly improved as a result, too.
More importantly, the Berlin Airlift demonstrated the military need for Air Transport in addition to Bombers and Fighters. A result is the Air Mobility Command and aircraft like the C-141 Starlifter, the C-130 Hercules, the C-5 Galaxy, and our newest transport, the C-17 Globemaster III.
All of these political and logistical ideas came as a result of the resolve of the US, Great Britain, France, and Germany to resist totalitarian tactics and wage a battle of air transport. This battle saved over 2.5 million people without firing a single shot. In a matter of fifteen months in 1948-49, world history was changed by the greatest humanitarian aviation event in history, the Berlin Airlift. | MEMORIALS: The Airlift Memorial at Rhein Main Air Base, Frankfurt, and on Luftbruckenplatz at Tempelhf Airport in Berlin. Each prong represents one of the 3 air corridors used during "Operation Vittles", and the names of the US and British Airmen killed in the process are inscribed on the base of each. | 31 Americans lost their lives during the Berlin Airlift, paying the ultimate price for the freedom of others. Let that not be forgotten. 1st Lt George B. Smith Tuscaloosa, Alabama | Captain James A. Vaughan New Haven, Connecticut | Cpl Norbert H. Theis Cunningham, Kansas |
1st Lt Leland V. Williams Abilene, Texas | 1st Lt Eugene S. Erickson Collinsville, Illinois | PFC Ronald E. Stone Mt. Sterling, Kentucky | Mr Karl V. Hagen New York, New York | Sgt Richard Winter Seattle, Washington | 1st Lt Ralph H. Boyd Fort Worth, Texas | 1st Lt Charles H. King Britton, South Dakota | Captain Billy E. Phelps Long Beach, California | 1st Lt Craig B. Ladd Minneapolis, Minnesota | 1st Lt Robert W. Stuber Arlington, California | 1st Lt Willis F. Hargis Nacogdoches, Texas | TSgt Charles L. Putnam Colorado Springs, Colorado | Major Edwin C. Diltz Fayetteville, Texas | TSgt Lloyd G. Wells San Antonio, Texas | 1st Lt Robert P. Weaver Fort Wayne, Indiana | Captain Willian R. Howard Gunnison, Mississippi | AD/3 Harry R. Crites, Jr. Lafayette, Indiana | 1st Lt Royce C. Stephens San Antonio, Texas | Captain Joel M. DeVolentine Miami, Florida | 1st Lt Richard M. Wurgel Union City, New Jersey | 1st Lt Robert C. von Luehrte Covington, Kentucky | 1st Lt William T. Lucas Wilson, North Carolina | 1st Lt Lowell A. Wheaton, Jr. Corpus Christi, Texas | 2nd Lt Donald J. Leemon Green Bay, Wisconsin | PFC Johnny T. Orms Rhein-Main Air Base | Captain William A. Rathgeber Portland, Oregon | TSgt Herbert F. Heinig Fort Wayne, Indiana | | Sgt Bernard J. Watkins Lafayette, Indiana | |
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