Brigadier General Harrison Reed Thyng (April 12, 1918 – September 24, 1983) was a fighter pilot and a general in the United States Air Force (USAF). He is notable as one of only six USAF fighter pilots to be recognized as an ace in two wars. On retiring from the military, Thyng became a New Hampshire candidate to the United States Senate.
In 1966 Thyng ran as the Republican Party candidate for the United States Senate seat from New Hampshire held by Thomas J. McIntyre. He prevailed in a crowded Republican primary that included former governors Lane Dwinell and Wesley Powell, Party chair William R. Johnson, and Doloris Bridges, widow of 25-year U.S. Senator Styles Bridges. In the general election, McIntyre was a strong supporter of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Vietnam War policy, neutralizing much of Thyng's appeal as a conservative and a hawk. Because of financial support from H. L. Hunt and others, and his position on the war, Thyng was successfully painted as a far-right candidate and was defeated 54% to 45.9%.
Thyng founded the New England Aeronautical Institute in 1965, which later merged with Daniel Webster Junior College to become Daniel Webster College in Nashua, New Hampshire, and served as its first president. He retired to Pittsfield, New Hampshire.
Thyng died of heart attack on September 24, 1983, at the age of 65. He was buried at Riverview Cemetery in Barnstead, New Hampshire.