who was the chocolate pilot and why was that his nickname
Gail Halvorsen Halvorsen grew up in rural Utah but always had a desire to fly. He earned his private pilot's license in 1941 and then joined the Civil Air Patrol.[2] He joined the United States Army Air Forces in 1942 and was assigned to Germany on July 10, 1948 to be a pilot for the Berlin Airlift.[3] Halvorsen piloted C-47s and C-54s during the Berlin airlift ("Operation Vittles"). During that time he founded "Operation Little Vittles", an effort to raise morale in Berlin by dropping candy via miniature parachute to the city's residents. Halvorsen began "Little Vittles" with no authorization from his superiors but over the next year became a national hero with support from all over the United States.[4] Halvorsen's operation dropped over 23 tons of candy to the residents of Berlin.[5] He became known as the "Berlin Candy Bomber", "Uncle Wiggly Wings", and "The Chocolate Flier".[6]