<text id=00he1302><title>Halting the Trains</title>
<history>US Air Force: Events History</history>
<article><hdr>Halting the Trains</hdr><body>
<p>Six days later, they dropped the other shoe. Food trains had continued to run over the line from Helmstedt to Berlin, and had not been stopped by the Russians. Now the line had developed 'technical troubles', the Russians said, and would have to be closed for repairs. They tore up about 100 yards of track to guarantee no passage of rail traffic.
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<p>The Western powers had two choices. They could stay and starve, or they could evacuate their own people and leave Berlin to the gentle mercies of the Russians. The Berliners had had one dose of that treatment, and wanted no more. The Western powers correctly saw what would happen if they pulled out, and vowed to stay in Berlin somehow.
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<p>Careful calculations showed that the 2.5 mil1ion people in Berlin, excluding those in the Russian zone, could be kept alive on about 4,500 tons of food and other essentials each day. There was only one way to deliver that amount: by air, through the corridors to Berlin.
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<p>LeMay had available a total of 102 Douglas C-47 and two Douglas C-54 transports. The C-47s could haul three tons at best, and the C-54s, 10. The daily requirements of Berlin would demand the equivalent of 1,500 C-47 flights. There was one airport in the American zone at Templehof, and one in the British zone at Gatow. The Royal Air Force had a handful of C-47s, but the combined force was far below the need.
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<p>By scraping together every available plane and crew, USAFE was able to fly 80 tons of supplies into Berlin on Sunday 26 June. Two days later, the RAF began its ferry runs to Gatow. For a couple of weeks, this force flew the corridors, carrying essentials to Berlin. The Russians began making aggressive passes at the transports, and a threat appeared to be building.
