HILL AIR FORCE BASE—Though the 1970s saw the end of the Vietnam War, it was still a turbulent time across the globe. The Soviet Union was gaining a foothold, and the Cold War was beginning to be an even larger threat. Much like other bases around the nation, and the world, Hill Air Force Base maintained readiness, and constant vigilance throughout the decade.

The 1970s at Hill saw much of the same programs from the prior decade both continuing and expanding, including the production of the Minuteman ICBMs, as well as aircraft refitting and repair. There were, of course, new developments as well, including the arrival of some of military aviation's more famous aircraft. 

Perhaps the most notable of these was the arrival and maintenance of the F-4E Phantom and the F-16. Introduced in the mid-1970s, the F-16 and its variants are still in service today and have become iconic in the world of military aviation. The reliable and outstanding aircraft saw its first maintenance at Hill in 1979, but it wouldn’t be the last.

During this time, a very familiar face was serving as Hill Air Force Base’s Inspector General. Colonel Gail Halvorsen had taken up the role of Inspector General following a brief stint as the Commander of the 7350th Air Base Group at Tempelhof Central Airport, Berlin, Germany, and ended his 31-year career at Hill Air Force Base in 1974. His most notable achievement, however, took place decades earlier, at the close of World War II.

Many people are familiar with Colonel Halvorsen’s moniker of “the Candy Bomber,” but may not know the exact details of how that name came to be. Thanks to coverage in recent years, the image of candy bundles tied to handkerchief parachutes has become rightfully associated with Colonel Halvorsen, but the story starts a far cry from there.

Following the end of World War II, Germany was carved up by the Allied powers, the West liberated and a free Germany, and the East, under the Soviet Union, who, in many ways, felt the need to exact vengeance upon the German people for the horrors inflicted upon Russia during the war. Needless to say, the people suffered. 

And that suffering was everywhere. Food was scarce, Berlin was in rubble, and people were struggling for basic necessities. It was under these conditions that Gail Halvorsen, a young C-54 pilot at the time, noticed a group of children behind a barbed wire fence enclosure. Feeling extreme compassion for them, he gave them what little he had in his pocket: two sticks of gum.

Halvorsen’s heart broke as he watched the children dividing the two sticks between as many of them as they could, and he decided to do something. That’s where it all started. From the first flight, signaling to the children that it was him by wiggling his wings, the operation grew exponentially, with the blessing of General William H. Turner, it turned into a full-blown, militarily sanctioned operation: Operation Little Vittles. 

Halvorsen became a hero, not only to those children he helped but to all those who heard his story. Despite the many accolades and the recognition heaped upon him, Halvorsen remained a dedicated airman, clocking over 8,000 flight hours across his 31-year career. He is yet another outstanding example of service from the alumni of Hill Air Force Base.