The "Chocolate Pilot" dropped candy-laden parachutes for children 60 years ago. (AP)
It's been 60 years since the children of Europe received Hershey's chocolate candy bars from American soldiers during WWII. For some of them, it was the only chocolate they were able to taste during the war and the only semblance of a dessert.
For the 60-year anniversary and just in time for Memorial Day weekend celebrations, retired Air Force Col. Gail Halvorsen, better known as "The Chocolate Pilot," "The Candy Bomber" and "Uncle Wiggly Wings" was honored during ceremonies on both U.S. and German soils.
Pictured at right, Halvorsen is joined by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, second from left, and Mike Rhodes, acting director of administration and management, during a corridor dedication ceremony for the Department of Defense Humanitarian Relief Efforts at Home and Abroad on Tuesday at the Pentagon.
Halvorsen earned his nicknames for the small candy-laden parachutes he dropped from his aircraft to children during the Berlin Airlift of 1948-1949.
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