POST WAR WORLD 1946 1959
BERLIN AIRLIFT
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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They were flown Russian planes that had been captured during WWII
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They were the planes used to carry nuclear bombs
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They had missiles targeted at East Berlin
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They were ugly and Stalin wouldn’t want to look at them
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Detailed explanation-1: -Stalin was powerless to stop the Berlin Airlift. To shoot down the planes could have provoked World War Three, and at this stage, unlike the USA, the USSR did not have nuclear weapons.
Detailed explanation-2: -Joseph Stalin, the Soviet leader, imposed the Berlin Blockade from 24 June 1948 to 12 May 1949, cutting off all land and river transit between West Berlin and West Germany. The Western Allies responded with a massive airlift to come to West Berlin’s aid.
Detailed explanation-3: -Between 10 August 1948 and 15 August 1949, there were 733 incidents of harassment of airlift planes in the corridors. These incidents included Soviet pilots buzzing the transport aircraft, air-bourne obstacles such as tethered balloons, radio interference and searchlights in the pilots’ eyes, etc..
Detailed explanation-4: -The United States and United Kingdom responded by airlifting food and fuel to Berlin from Allied airbases in western Germany. The crisis ended on May 12, 1949, when Soviet forces lifted the blockade on land access to western Berlin.