Special Forces Berlin

Clandestine Cold War Operations of the US Army's Elite, 1956–1990

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Communism & Socialism, History, Military
Cover of the book Special Forces Berlin by James Stejskal, Casemate
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: James Stejskal ISBN: 9781612004457
Publisher: Casemate Publication: February 15, 2017
Imprint: Casemate Language: English
Author: James Stejskal
ISBN: 9781612004457
Publisher: Casemate
Publication: February 15, 2017
Imprint: Casemate
Language: English

It is a little-known fact that during the Cold War, two U.S. Army Special Forces detachments were stationed far behind the Iron Curtain in West Berlin. The existence and missions of the two detachments were highly classified secrets.

The massive armies of the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies posed a huge threat to the nations of Western Europe. US military planners decided they needed a plan to slow the juggernaut they expected when and if a war began. The plan was Special Forces Berlin. The first 40 men who came to Berlin in mid-1956 were soon reinforced by 60 more and these 100 soldiers (and their successors) would stand ready to go to war at only two hours’ notice, in a hostile area occupied by nearly one million Warsaw Pact forces, until 1990.

Their mission should hostilities commence was to wreak havoc behind enemy lines, and buy time for vastly outnumbered NATO forces to conduct a breakout from the city. In reality it was an ambitious and extremely dangerous mission, even suicidal. Highly trained and fluent in German, each man was allocated a specific area. They were skilled in clandestine operations, sabotage, intelligence tradecraft and able to act if necessary as independent operators, blending into the local population and working unseen in a city awash with spies looking for information on their every move.

Special Forces Berlin was a one of a kind unit that had no parallel. It left a legacy of a new type of soldier expert in unconventional warfare, one that was sought after for other deployments including the attempted rescue of American hostages from Tehran in 1979. With the U.S. government officially acknowledging their existence in 2014, their incredible story can now be told.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

It is a little-known fact that during the Cold War, two U.S. Army Special Forces detachments were stationed far behind the Iron Curtain in West Berlin. The existence and missions of the two detachments were highly classified secrets.

The massive armies of the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies posed a huge threat to the nations of Western Europe. US military planners decided they needed a plan to slow the juggernaut they expected when and if a war began. The plan was Special Forces Berlin. The first 40 men who came to Berlin in mid-1956 were soon reinforced by 60 more and these 100 soldiers (and their successors) would stand ready to go to war at only two hours’ notice, in a hostile area occupied by nearly one million Warsaw Pact forces, until 1990.

Their mission should hostilities commence was to wreak havoc behind enemy lines, and buy time for vastly outnumbered NATO forces to conduct a breakout from the city. In reality it was an ambitious and extremely dangerous mission, even suicidal. Highly trained and fluent in German, each man was allocated a specific area. They were skilled in clandestine operations, sabotage, intelligence tradecraft and able to act if necessary as independent operators, blending into the local population and working unseen in a city awash with spies looking for information on their every move.

Special Forces Berlin was a one of a kind unit that had no parallel. It left a legacy of a new type of soldier expert in unconventional warfare, one that was sought after for other deployments including the attempted rescue of American hostages from Tehran in 1979. With the U.S. government officially acknowledging their existence in 2014, their incredible story can now be told.

More books from Casemate

Cover of the book Night Raiders of the Air by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Into the Dark Water by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Pathfinder Pioneer by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Broken Arrow by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Allied Armor in Normandy by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Recce: Small Team Missions Behind Enemy Lines by James Stejskal
Cover of the book We Few by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Vanished Hero by James Stejskal
Cover of the book The Dragon's Teeth by James Stejskal
Cover of the book The D-Day Training Pocket Manual 1944 by James Stejskal
Cover of the book To War with the 4th by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Erich Von Manstein by James Stejskal
Cover of the book The Way of the Eagle by James Stejskal
Cover of the book Major General George H. Sharpe and The Creation of American Military Intelligence in the Civil War by James Stejskal
Cover of the book War on Truth by James Stejskal
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy