| Original caption: “Youngsters stand on a bomb-damaged building near the Tempelhof Airport as a United States cargo plane, part of the Berlin airlift, flies overhead after delivering a load of coal on July 9, 1948. Airlifts broke the Soviet blockade of land routes to Berlin.” A United States Air Force (USAF) Douglas C-54 Skymaster lands at Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof during the Berlin Blockade. On June 24, 1948, Soviet forces blockaded all road, rail and water routes into Berlin’s Allied-controlled areas, stifling the vital flow of food, coal and other supplies. Soviet troop numbers dwarfed those of the Allies, which had drawn down after the war, so there was little the Allies could do about it militarily. But the Soviets couldn’t block Allied airspace, so American and British forces took to the skies to get supplies to the Allied sectors. On June 26, the U.S. launched Operation Vittles, which the Royal Air Force (RAF) later joined. It was the biggest aerial resupply mission ever embarked upon. The Allies also imposed their own counter-blockade, restricting trade with East Germany and East Berlin. The airlift was a daunting task at 1st. More than 2,000,000 Berliners were relying on the aid, which included much-needed food, fuel and medicine. Over time, though, it became more efficient, and the number of airdrops increased. At 1 point, Air Force and Navy planes were landing at Tempelhof Airport every 45 seconds. On Easter Sunday, April 17, 1949, the constant procession of planes managed to deliver 13,000 tons of cargo, including the equivalent of 600 railroad cars of coal – all in 1 day. During the entire airlift, the USAF and RAF delivered more than 2.3 1,000,000 tons of food, fuel and supplies to West Berlin via more than 270-right 1,000 airdrops. American aircrews made more than a 189,000 flights, totaling nearly 600,000 flying hours and exceeding 92,000,000 miles. Near the start of the blockade, the Western powers had established an embargo on exports from the entire Eastern bloc, severely hampering the East German economy in particular.[93] The embargo had been exacting a higher toll on the Soviets than the airlift was costing the Western bloc, leading Stalin to recognize the futility of continuing the blockade. On April 15, 1949, the Soviet news agency TASS reported a willingness by the Soviets to lift the blockade. The next day, the United States State Department stated that the “way appears clear” for the blockade to end. Soon afterwards, the 4 powers began serious negotiations, and a settlement was reached on Western terms. On May 4, 1949, the Allies announced an agreement to end the blockade in 8 days. The Soviet blockade of Berlin was lifted at 1 minute after midnight on May 12, 1949. A British convoy immediately drove through to Berlin, and the 1st train from West Germany reached Berlin at)532 Hours. Later that day, an enormous crowd celebrated the end of the blockade. The Berlin Airlift officially ended on September 30, 1949, after 15 months. Henry D. “Hank” Burroughs Junior (August 1, 1918 – January 14, 2000) had been photographing for news agencies in Berlin since the end of the war. He noticed escalating tensions when he and another reporter were arrested by the Soviets in East Berlin in 1947. He was interrogated for 8 hours and released at the request of United States Commandant of the Berlin Sector. He photographed air operations at Tempelhof. He later recalled, “I remember those early days covering activities at Tempel-hof. Everyone pitched in with great enthusiasm. The German people whom I talked with were ecstatic, realizing that General Lucius D. Clay [(April 23, 1898 – April 16, 1978)] was not going to abandon them and their city.” | |
| Image Filename | wwii0776.jpg |
| Image Size | 930.37 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 3000 x 2192 |
| Photographer | Henry Burroughs |
| Photographer Title | ACME |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | July 9, 1948 |
| Location | Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof |
| City | Berlin |
| State or Province | Berlin |
| Country | Germany |
| Archive | |
| Record Number | |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
Author of the World War II Multimedia Database