Berliners watch a C-54 land at Tempelhof Airport (1948) - Photo courtesy Wikipedia
60 years ago today marked the end of one of the first cold war international crises post-World War Two. The Berlin Blockade – was a tense period which began 24 June 1948 when the Soviet Union blocked Western forces’ railway and road access to the western sectors of Berlin.
Their plan was to pressure western forces into allowing Soviet controlled regions to supply food and fuel to the people of Berlin and effectively gain control over the entire city.
In response, Western Allies initiated the Berlin Airlift to carry supplies to the people of Berlin for the span of almost a year.
The relief effort would require a minimum of 4,000 tons of food and supplies every day. The British Royal Air Force, in joint operations with The United States Air Force, flew more than 200,000 flights providing 13,000 tons of food daily. By April 1949 the airlift was delivering more supplies than had previously made it to Berlin via road and rail.
Humiliated, the Soviet Union lifted the blockade 12 May 1949.
You can find out more about The Berlin Airlift in this old newsreel film below.
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[...] The Time Machine carried a feature about the Berlin Airlift a short while ago. You can find out more about the operation and see vintage newsreel here. [...]
Hi Dave
WOW is all I can say about the Berlin Airlift. I was 4 years old at the time so I don’t remember it, but like you my dad used to take me to the pictures every week so probably I would have seen it. How come its not passed down in history. It certainly needs to be.
Annie