Major General
Henry B. Sayler
Major General Henry B.
Sayler was born in Huntington, Indiana on November 4, 1893 and graduated from the United States Military Academy
in 1915.
In 1942, General Eisenhower assigned him as his Chief Ordnance Officer for the European Theater of Operations, and tasked him to plan, assemble, and execute the logistical support for the North African invasion. Working long hours with his staff, juggling maintenance personnel, hiring civilians, and receiving assistance from the British, he succeeded in amassing the required supplies and equipment.
For the D-Day invasion, he was able to anticipate and solve many unique but difficult problems, such as the waterproofing of vehicles and unexploded bomb disposal. When D-Day arrived, the invasion force was probably the best equipped fighting force in the history of warfare.
After the war, he was assigned as the Chief of Research and Development, Ordnance Department. Due to his past experience, he focused his attention on making all ordnance materiel adaptable to aerial transport. General Sayler retired in 1949 and died on May 7, 1970.