The Soviet Union had halted all traffic by water and land into or out of the Allied sectors of Berlin. The only remaining access routes into the city were three twenty-mile-wide air corridors across the Russian zone. The Soviets' intention was to take over the three zones of Berlin not under their control. With no Allied traffic coming into Berlin to supply its inhabitants with basic necessities, the Soviet Union would be able to starve Berlin into submission. On June 26, 1948, the Western Powers responded with the start of the Berlin Airlift. On that day, C-47 cargo planes, flown by the United States Air Force, carried eighty tons of food into Berlin, not nearly enough to provide the minimum daily requirements of Berlin's population, but it would soon be joined by the U. S. Navy and the Royal Air Force. In short order, the United States responded to the Soviet's blockade by making an open-ended commitment to the people of Berlin to supply them with calories and coal, as long as they were willing to stand up to Soviet bullying.
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