The Berlin Airlift/ The division of Germany

OCR History A Level Democracy and dictatorships Chapter 8 Defeat and occupation

24th June 1948

The Soviet authorities decided to block all access by road, rail and canal to West Berlin, as well as cutting water, power and food supplied from the Soviet zone

Aim of blockade

* To pressurise the allies into abandoning their plan for the new currency
* To make the 3 powers surrender the western sectors of Berlin

General Clay

He started to organise an airlift which flew through the air corridors across the Soviet zone to bring basic supplies into West Berlin

Legality ?

The airlift was legal according to the Potsdam agreement and it meant that the supplies could only be stopped by the Soviets shooting down the British and US planes

Duration

11 months

Impact

* 279,000 flights, one every minute at its peak
* 2.3 million tons of food and supplies
* 1.5 million tons of coal

End

12th May 1949 when the Soviets realised it was useless

* 76 aircrew lost their lives in 24 plane crashes

The western allies decided to…

* Stop paying reparations to the USSR in response to Soviet failure to fulfil their obligations May 1946
* Create the Bizone January 1947
* Introduce the Marshall Plan June 1947
* Create the DM June 1948

The soviets decided to…

* Nationalise industry and land reform 1945-6
* Establish a German Economic Conference June 1947
* Create the Ostmark currency June 1948