William Henry Tunner was a general officer in the United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

 and its predecessor, the United States Army Air Forces

United States Army Air Forces

The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....

. Tunner was known for his expertise in the command of large-scale military airlift operations, first in Air Transport Command

Air Transport Command

Air Transport Command is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its mission was to meet the urgent demand for the speedy reinforcement of the United States' military bases worldwide during World War II, using an air supply system to supplement surface transport...

 (ATC) during World War II, commanding The Hump

The Hump

The Hump was the name given by Allied pilots in the Second World War to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains over which they flew military transport aircraft from India to China to resupply the Chinese war effort of Chiang Kai-shek and the units of the United States Army Air Forces based in...

 operation, and later in Military Air Transport Service

Military Air Transport Service

The Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...

 (MATS) during the Berlin Airlift in 1949-1951. He eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant general

Lieutenant General

Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....

 and commanded MATS itself.

Tunner appointed Nancy Love to the staff of his first major command in 1942 and was a key figure in the planning and creation of the Womens Auxilary Ferrying Service.
Tunner entered the United States Military Academy

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 on July 1, 1924, appointed from the 5th District of New Jersey

New Jersey's 5th congressional district

New Jersey's Fifth Congressional District is currently represented by Republican Scott Garrett. Garrett defeated Democrat Paul Aronsohn and independent candidate R. Matthew Fretz 55%-44% in the United States general elections, 2006....

 by United States Representative Ernest R. Ackerman

Ernest R. Ackerman

Ernest Robinson Ackerman was an American Republican Party politician who represented New Jersey's 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1919 to 1931.-Early years:...

.