Air travel subsidized to make it affordable put a weekend in West Germany within reach of many Berliners. From time to time, however, threats or direct interference by the Soviet Union reminded the aviation world that air travelers were not above being pawns in a 3-D chess game. This story of what should have been an anxiety-free “ausflug” to port city Hamburg is just one example.

At the end of the PDF are links that include Bob Hope’s portrayal of nervous humor on his flight to Berlin.

To read this *.pdf go to the bottom of the frame and choose either to download it or expand the document to full screen.

For more on flying in, out and over Berlin, the following PDF tells the story of Allied “recon” flights in small planes and Wall patrols with veterans of the Vietnam War demonstrating their flying skills.