Russia Tried to Trick C-130 Flights West Berlin
I flew C-130s into West Berlin several times, and it was always fun. At that time, the only way into Berlin was through three corridors from the west, over East Germany, and into Berlin. Almost every time we made the trip, Russian controllers would come on our frequency and give us directions to violate the corridor boundaries. If we did, we would have been either shot down or forced down and spend a long time trying to get out.
We carried in a couple of classified loads, about which I can’t say much about.
Each time we went to Berlin, we landed at Tempelhof Airport, which is now closed. During WWII, it was a major field for the Nazis. Later, it became the center of the Berlin Airlift, and as a result, many airplanes landed there, lending it a rich history.
Landing at Tempelhof was interesting and likely one of the reasons that it was closed. Due to the high housing density in West Berlin, our approach took us over East Germany, then into East Berlin, and ultimately to the airport.
As we approached the runway, we flew between apartment buildings. We were so close that we could see in their windows. It must have been interesting for them.
It was quite a sight flying over East Germany. The contrast between East and West was striking. Seeing the Berlin Wall from the air was scary. We could see all the barbed wire, guard towers, control gates, and the East German soldiers.
The city of East Berlin was dismal. It was dark, dirty, and had little traffic. Military trucks were everywhere.
I was an Air Force pilot for 12 years and flew to 27 countries. Then I worked on many Top-Secret programs at Northrop Grumman. I have a lot of interesting stories like this, check them out at Ray’s Interesting Stories
Here’s an interesting link, when President Reagan landed at Tempelhof
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