Heije Schaper

Heije Schaper (8 September 1906 – 26 May 1996) was a Dutch naval and air force officer and lieutenant general of the Royal Netherlands Air Force.

His Excellency Heije Schaper
Heije Schaper in 1966
State Secretary for Defence
In office 22 June 1966 – 5 April 1967 Serving with Gerard Peijnenburg Adri van Es
Prime Minister	Jo Cals (1966) Jelle Zijlstra (1966–1967)
Preceded by	Jan Borghouts
Succeeded by	Bob Duynstee
Chairman of the United Defence Staff of the Armed Forces of the Netherlands
In office 1 November 1957 – 10 May 1959
Preceded by	Ben Hasselman
Succeeded by	Henry Propper
Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force
In office 1 May 1956 – 1 September 1961
Preceded by	Anton Baretta
Succeeded by	Hein Zielstra
Personal details
Born	Heije Schaper (1906-09-08)8 September 1906 Joure, Netherlands
Died	26 May 1996(1996-05-26) (aged 89) The Hague, Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch
Political party	Independent Liberal
Spouse(s)	Titia Feenstra ​ ​ (m. 1942; his death 1996)​
Children	Herman Schaper (born 1949) 2 other sons
Alma mater	Royal Naval College
Occupation	Officer · Aviator
Military service
Allegiance	Netherlands
Branch/service	Royal Netherlands Navy (1929–1954) Royal Netherlands Air Force (1954–1961)
Years of service	1929–1961 (Active duty) 1961–1964 (Reserve)
Rank	Lieutenant general
Unit	320 Dutch Squadron RAF
Commands	321 Dutch Squadron RAF (1945–1946) Royal Netherlands Air Force (1956–1961) Armed forces of the Netherlands (1957–1959)
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of the Netherlands Battle of France Battle of Britain
Chief military adjutant to the	Monarch of the Netherlands (1962–1978)

Schaper a highly decorated World War II officer was awarded the Military Order of William, the highest honour of the Netherlands on 15 November 1940. Schaper served in the Royal Netherlands Navy and later the Royal Netherlands Air Force. He was the Commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force from 1 May 1956 until 1 September 1961 and the Chairman of the United Defence Staff of the Armed Forces of the Netherlands (highest-ranking military officer) from 1 November 1957 until 10 May 1959. He retired from active service in 1961 and served as State Secretary for Defence, tasked with Air Force affairs from 22 June 1966 until 5 April 1967.[1]