SOVIET-EUROPEAN COMMUNIST COUNTRIES SOVIET HELICOPTERS ATTEMPT TO FORCE DOWN U.S. ARMY AIRCRAFT WITHIN THE BERLIN CONTROL ZONE (SC)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP94T00754R000200260001-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 10, 2005
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: December 25, 1984
• Content Type: REPORT

DP94T00754 - 25X1
25X1
SOVIET HELICOPTERS ATTEMPT TO FORCE DOWN U.Y
AIRCRAFT WITHIN THE BERLIN CONTROL ZONES
SOVIET-EUROPEAN COMMUNIST COUNTRIES
Army plane that was operating within thle Berlin Control Zone. Collateral information
indicates that the aircraft was the U.S. Army UV-20 (Lark Spur) aircraft. 25X1
Prior to the incident, the Group of Soviet Forces, Germany (GSFG) Army via ion
Oranienburg Assault Transport, Helicopter Regiment was probably conducting local
airfield activity in the Oranienburg area. At 1318Z on 24 December, an Oranienburg
based MI-8 (Hip-C) reported a "biplane" flying towards him with his landing lights on.
The MI-8 pilot was instructed to lead the plane to Oranienburg for a landing. A second
helicopter was granted permission to assist in bringing in the aircraft. When the UV-20
did not respond to the helicopter's actions, the Soviet pilots were instructed to "put
pressure on the plane, but not to close inside 200 meters." At 1333Z, the UV-20
continued on its flight route and the to Soviet helicopters landed at Oranienburg.
25X1
On 24 December, four Soviet helicopters attempted to force down a U.S.
1 1 Between 1340 and 1354Z, two additional Oranienburg helicopters attempted
to force down the plane as it operated over the Berlin Control Zone. One helicopter
pilot was instructed to lead the plane for a landing at Oranienburg with a second
helicopter assisting. Both helicopters landed at Oranienburg at 1354Z, and at 1411Z the
UV-20 recovered at Tempelhof Central Airport. (2/PP/1349-84, 250545Z)
TOP SECRET
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BERLIN
Ilnly lur mcmhris of lhplmndt? corp Wesh?ui
Orr.uua tiun fun.es aun non C'rm.n , vin
holy for mxuienls of I der it Republic of Genneny
tWesl hrrhu vs col uUmdlcd)
Alto used Ior mad, rutrrtou:d goods and ooenangr
it hun,d uses
Only tun n,ulenls of luderal Republic of Germany
(West Berliners not adnultedj
authorities since August 23, 1961) for a small number
of persons who are acceptable to the East Berlin
Invalidenstrasse
Ober balumbrucke
Sonnenallee
III Additional chec ko,t; points are located or Friedncir
Strasse radruad station for those traveling on inter
national trains and on the SRahn (elevated Intef7rhant
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 BERLIN
O
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I Main border crossing points authorized by Communist
authorities since August 23, 1961:
0 Fried; choirasse/Zimmer st rase
("Ch eckvomt Charlie
Only for members of Diplomatic Corps, Westno
Occupation tones and non German civilians
Printenstrasse/Ileinnr,h Hemslrasse
Only for rrvilents of federal Republic of Germany
IWest Berliners not adnntIed)
trrronal goods and ceeharuC'
Also used for mad, in
of hunal uses
Rornholmrrstrasse
Only for resolrnts of Federal Republic of Germ,my
(West Berlmrrs riot admit tril) n Minor border crossing points (authorized by Communist
authorities since August 23, 1961) for a small number
of persons who are acceptable to the East Berlin
authorities and who have special passes
0 Chaussershassr
? Invafldenstrasse
Oberbaumbrucke.
Sonnenallee
III Additional rhrrkrntl points are Incited at Friedrich
sfrasse railroad station for those traveling on urtm
national trams and on the S-Rahn lelevarrd Inrer:'1,anr
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 Approved For Release 2005/02/28 : CIA-RDP94T007
Teltow Canal Negotiations
During the Four-Power negotiations on Berlin 1970-71, the
Allies hoped to provide for improved water access. One of the
ideas proposed, it may be recalled, concerned the opening of the
feltow Canal. It runs through southern West Berlin, connecting
the GDR and East Berlin. It has not been open for transit in its
entirety since 1945 because the GDR, which claims jurisdiction
over it, would not allow traffic to move on that part of the canal
Fig. 2 Berliner Waterways
> Schleuse
I Weathafen
2 Sudhafen
3 Humbotdthafen
4 Helen Tegel
5 Borsighafen
6 Osthafen
7 Viktoriaspeicher
8 Hafen Neuk6lln
TeltowkanalhAfen
9 Llchterfolde
10 Steglilz
11 Lankwitz
12 Merlendorf
13 Tempelhof
14 Br tz
15 Hudow
in East Germany so long as the Teltow Carnal Company in West
Berlin continues to control that portion of the canal in the Western
Sectors. Although the Allies were unsuccessful in winning Soviet
approval for opening the GDR portion of the canal, German re-
presentatives eventually consented to take up negotiations on the
matter in 1975.
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From the very beginning, these talks posed a number of n
unimportant problems for the Allies. In the main, these stemml
from the fact that the GDR hoped to use this issue as an instr
ment to deny the competence of the West German government f
access as provided for by the Quadripartite Agreement and t
ensuing transit accords. To the East German regime, the openi
of the canal, which would reduce travelling time for barges,
not concern the connection of a Berlin waterway with tr
traffic between the FRG and West Berlin (as the Allies maintain
but represented an improvement of traffic between the GDR
West Berlin. Consequently, the communist side refused to ac
negotiations with Bonn (which heretofore had been exclusi
competent of German authorities for matters of access); it w
only deal with representatives of the West Berlin Senat.
This tactic put the Western Three on the spot for they agai
not want to appear opposed to negotiations leading to prac
improvements in and around Berlin. But at the same time,
were concerned about the political implications of giving su
to the East German plan to change the status of Berlin by all
the Senat, in its relationship with the GDR, to be shoved int
role of a sovereign state government acting independently
Federal Republic. In the end, after long internal'deliberatiof
Allies decided they "could not be more Gern'S.art than th
mans." Thus, they gave the green light for the West Berlin g
ment to negotiate the canal project on behalf of the FRG.
detailed letters of instructions to the Senat they carefully c
scribed its mandate. It would only be permitted to discuss
nical matters" with the GDR. Legal and political problei
nected with the transit character of the canal would rema
ters for Bonn to discuss with East Berlin.'
Having come reluctantly to this decision, the Western T
back sceptically, waiting for other complications to devel
sure enough it was not long before further snags occur
move, which was construed by the Allies as an attemp
credibility to its three-state theory, the GDR proceeded
another political hurdle: it now demanded a high-ranki
official as a negotiating partner, thus elevating the disc
the level of international exchanges. The Allies, the FR
4R0002b0?1'$6M' pfget, December 23, 1975.
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been enlarged to handle long-range jet passenger traffic and has the
longest runways in the Greater Berlin area. Through a special
crossingpoint (erected in June 1963) it attracts tourists and resi-
dents from West Germany, ? It} 1974, about 186,870 passengers
used this gateway to go to the East German airport."
The GDR airline Interflug and airlines of other communist
nations operate regularly scheduled and charter services at Schone-
feld. They provide connections principally with Eastern Europe,
Fig. 4 Berlin Airports and Berlin Control Zone
the Soviet Union and the Near East. In addition SAS, AVA, Finn
Air, Iraq Airlines, Syrian Arab Airlines and THY Airlines operate
scheduled flights at the East German airport. Although the Allies
discourage major Western airlines from making shuttle runs to
East Berlin, a few carriers including KLM, SAS and Sabena run
occasional charter flights to and from Schonefeld.'Z
11 U.S. Mission (Berlin), Berlin Accessways, Transportation, Communications
and Utilities (Berlin: Economic /Commercial Section, 1976), p. 24.
12 In so far as the East German government refused to publish figures regard-
ing the number of passengers using Schonefeld Airport, the International
Organization for Civil Airports (ICAA) stepped forward in June 1966 With
the appropriate statistics. According to its records, a total of 1.6 million
passengers, including transit guests, were processed in Schonefeld during
1975. This represents an increase of 11.2 per cent over the preceding year.
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T he problem S
headline attention
traffic for Turkish
threatened to break
they felt they could
of the Turkish TH`
Istanbul/Ankara. T
Ankara and East Be
special discount to '
Turkish passengers H
The West Berlin gove
threatened discontir
would mean an estin
and millions of marl
the city.t3
In retrospect, one
"There was more s(
traffic over Schone
months." Although t
tion, this authority o
by the Senat or Allie!
The Senat found i
this time because of c
complex, which wa.,
Airport ( French Sect
catching once officio
beautifully modern I
concrete and glass
existing strips have b
one built to accomo,
By contrast, West Be.
during the same periom
13 Der Tagesspiegel, Dec
14During 1977 95,000
departed from Tegel
1978.
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ealized
regula-
awfully
of that
Toff the
total of
children
adopted
Treaty
th. And
German
without
new free-
.ittlement
,ear alone
nts made
3.33 mil
increase
973). Up
Berliners
of some
over an
And the
y quota.
ound 5.6
ecorded.
oactive to
that time,
inlawfully
five years.
Only about 500 individuals applied for and received special
permission to visit East Berlin and the GDR for more than thirty
days in the first year. The East German regime has not made avail-
able figures for later periods.7
Friedrich-
Str.
Checkpoint
Charlie
Friedrich- Heinrich-
Str. Heine-Str
Richtung Prlnzen-
Tempelhot Str.
Fig. 5 Main Intercity Crossing Point
The procedure used in applying for visitor permits has become
established routine, and the five East German offjces responsible
for handling West Berlin applications geneially have worked
;valuation
7
West Berlin Senat, Bericht uber Durchfiihrung des Viermachte-Abkommens
rlin: Press
and der erganzenden Vereinbarungen zwischen dean 3. Juni 1972 and deco
31. Mai 1973 (Berlin: Abgeordnetenhaus, 1973), p. 8.
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1
axle-kilometer basis, averaging about five million West marks
annually.
The new arrangements, which go a long way toward removing
some of the "red; tape" from international (UPU) postal regula-
tions so as to facilitate intra-German mail (which exceeds the
volume of any comparable two states), also provide for other im-
portant improvements in mail transport. For instance, sealed mail
cars may now be attached to trains using routes other than the
Helmstedt link. (This should improve service especially from
southern Germany.) In addition, mail can be moved by truck over
GDR highways.
1 Mitte
7 Charlottenburg
16 KOpenick
(Ost-Berlin)
8 Spandau
(Ost-Berlin)
2 Tiergarten
9 Wilmersdorf
17 Lichtenberg
3 Wedding
10 Zehlendorf
(Ost-Berlin)
4 Prenzleuer Berg
11 Schaneberg
18 Weifiensee
(Ost-Berlin)
12 Steglitz
(Oat-Berlin)
5 Friedrichshain
13 Tempelhof
19 Pankow
(Oat-Berlin)
14 Neukolln
(Ost-Berlin)
6 Kreuzberg
15 Treptow
20 Reinickendorf
(Ost-Berlin)
Fig. 6 The Administrative Districts of Berlin
Aside fro
attributable t
has created a
tween official
on a day-to-
structive han
multiple prob
Trash disp
concluded on
West Berlin's
been renewed
East Berlin in
twenty-year a
to its provisio
in the GDR a
marks. The ai,
trash dumps
East Berlin 2
territory leas,
Sewage ag
officials, but
to sewage ti
Germany. ((
West.) Despi
German regi
for a price.
11 For details
12 In the eve
German se
handle sev
would sud
move wou
are used al
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'I-, ill
o Fig.7
Location of the exchanged territory.
This rough outline shows the posi-
tion of the six West Berlin exclaves
and two East German enclaves (Eis-
keller) as well as the other small are-
as (two attached to Eiskeller and one
to Frohnau cemetary) involved in
the exchange of territory by East
Germany and West Berlin. Of the
original twelve exclaves belonging to
West Berlin (six to the American
Sector and six to the British Sector),
only six exclaves remain attached to
the city after the ratification of the
Berlin arrangement.
Wna 91-W 9'0 a
V ?
A X r
N O r H 0 M O
0 O
O
O e
C w
w w
w w N
to w g 0 0
O q
.f 9i Cr1 tz
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I CORDER ALTERATION
II. THE FROHNAU WEDGE
POTSDAM STATION
(CHISEL)
B??a.nl.rq Gu
y,. d S~ IJ
~_
;, _Bordor
WEST BERLIN
m
J ~
i
P
d
, Pln
.
r EAST
BERLIN
1
.
.
-
.
WEST BERLIN
'l '\\~- 6?ugM~ b~ W..r B?rln
FroI "k.dq."
6-' P-deT Sr?iw)
III, FROHNAU CEMETERY
IV. fICHTENWIESE
And ERLENGRUND
~SI T. Wei &In
1 .FS ?d. rAn ~'l
WEST BERLIN
WEST BERLIN
GDR
V,
fi?Ar
m^ F/'\
Erlmgr?nd
Fig. 9
I A border alteration in downtown Berlin. A recent territorial purchase
brought the area around the former Potsdam Station to West Berlin. Earlier
negotiations had centered on the neighboring territorial triangle.
II The Frohnau Wedge (Chisel). An important object of future East-West ter-
ritorial exchange is the Frohnau Chisel.
III Boundaries around the Frohnau Cemetery redrawn. A provision of the first
inner-German agreement on the exchange of territory enables West Berliners
with relatives buried in the northern part of Frohnau Cemetery to visit
their grave sites for the first time since the East German border was closed
in 1952.
IV Erlengrund: aria Fichtenwiese: the week-end and summer homes of some
400 West Berliners. East-West negotiations are in progress with regard to
these two exclaves in the hope of obtaining a Western-owned corridor to
them.
A ._._.-____ J r_.- P9_1_ ___ 'AA/AA P IA 1"A111'1f1ITAA~IC II"AAAA/1AA/1 /.AAAA A
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The Soviet Union maintains that the twenty-mile-wide corridors
are in fact "tubes" with a floor of 2,000 feet'and a ceiling of 10,000
feet. By contrast, the Allies recognize no such limitation and
maintain the right to fly at any level in the three corridors.
However, as a practical matter they have not pressed their claim in
the last seventeen years - even though this means that a number of
their aircraft, in meeting these limitations, must operate under
conditions which are inefficient.
Fig. 3 Berlin Air Corridors
This situation came about as a result of a crisis with the Russians
in the spring of 1960. At that time, the USSR challenged the right
of the Allies to fly beyond 10,000 feet in the corridors, arguing
that by doing so they violated East German airspace. To back up
their position, they buzzed several Allied planes and warned that
planes travelling above that ceiling were in danger of collision with
Soviet and East German aircraft. After reportedly "giving the mat-
ter great study," President Eisenhower, who was to meet with
Chairman Khrushchev two months later at a summit conference,
decided to bar any further high-level flights "for the time being."
If Eisenhower sought to give the publicl
that there was "no operational necessit
above the disputed ceiling, the real rE
issue was the refusal of the British to
deflecting the Soviet challenge. As one 1
says: "We have the British to thank
flying above 10,000 feet in the air corri
The Four Powers have the right to
and they may agree to permit
tice, flight in the three air corn
of the Western Three (and thi
quadripartite permission grants
subject to Four-Power procedu
of the Allied Control Authority
lated by the Berlin Air Safety C
ing quadripartite bodies in the di
2 For details see The New York Times,
an Allied official familiar with air trafi
ized commercial jet transports were
airlines couldn't fly above 10,000 feet.
access to Berlin was exercised continu,
carried out in practice below 10,000 feet
3 Post-war civil air operations in Berlin beg
Airport (known as the Kaiser's parade gr
the United States carrier American Overs,
merged with Pan American. On Septem
Airways (BEA) began commercial operati4
Tempelhof in July 1951. The third aii
scheduled services to and from Berlin is
services at Tempelhof on January 5, 19`.
upon introduction of the Caravelle jet ii
1975, Tempelhof ceased to serve as a base
shifted to Tegel. Nevertheless, although
serve the military, the American airport
alternate facility to civilian aircraft.
The other is Spandau Prison, where R former Deputy Fiihrer of Nazi Germany
crimes prisoner still imprisoned there.
400,000-a-year bill is paid for by the We
tered jointly by the Four Powers, and al
in its supervision. Each country appoint
warders, cooks and medical personnel.
sending a detail of forty-five soldiers to I
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