The Task Force Times

The Task Force Times was brought to life on the initiative of the supreme commander of the airlift, Major General William H. Tunner. It acted as a daily, free-of-charge information sheet for the CALFT. That was the Combined Airlift Task Force, the Anglo-American organisation in charge of the joint execution of the Berlin airlift. It was produced and printed in Wiesbaden and then delivered to all airlift bases.

The information sheet, which was printed on both sides, first appeared on 21 August 1948, and was produced for almost a year until 3 August 1949. The Task Force Times was created exclusively for those involved in the airlift, and it was only distributed to them. Its goal was to report about all activities, records and news from the individual airlift bases. The Task Force Times not only served to provide information, but also to motivate its readers. The daily transported tonnage of supplies was printed in the “Howgozit Board”, thus indirectly encouraging the individual units at the airports to compete with one another.

We have provided 16 example issues of the Task Force Times here for your perusal.