The Berlin Airlift - Victories, Myths, and the Berlin Blockade (432)

Cold War Conversations Podcast

Ian Sanders

Society & Culture, Documentary, History

4.8 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 27 November 2025

⏱️ 67 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Berlin Blockade was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War when the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under Western control. I speak with Joseph Pearson, the author of “The Airlift Victories, Myths, and the Berlin Blockade. This is not your standard military history. Drawing on first-hand interviews and untapped sources from both German and Anglo-American archives, Pearson interweaves personal tales into an extraordinary story: an American pilot crashing in Soviet territory; a Jewish photographer struggling to reconcile with the Germans; the 17,000 women who built Tegel Airport; Cambridge University actors performing in the ruins for British intelligence and Hollywood star Montgomery Clift filming at Tempelhof Airport. Through this deeply human lens, Pearson offers crucial historical insight into how lasting new battlelines were formed. The Berlin Airlift didn’t just supply a city; it wrote the playbook of the Cold War and continues to influence Western thinking and diplomacy with Russia to this day. Help me preserve Cold War history. ⁠⁠ You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠ If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, We also welcome one-off donations via the same link. Related episodes: Veteran of the Cold War Berlin Airlift – the Candy Bomber ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode56/⁠ A 98 Year Old USAF Veteran Remembers the Berlin Airlift ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode417/⁠ A visit to Cold War base RAF Burtonwood ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode74/⁠ Book Giveaway ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/giveaway1/⁠ Episode Extras ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode432/⁠ Find the ideal gift for the Cold War enthusiast in your life! Just go to ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/store/⁠ CONTINUE THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION Follow us on BlueSky ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social⁠ Follow us on Threads ⁠https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations⁠ Follow us on Twitter/X ⁠https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod⁠ Facebook ⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/⁠ Instagram ⁠https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/⁠ Youtube ⁠https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:05.9	They're going to crash in enemy territory behind the Iron Curtain. And so they went out of
0:11.9	the plane, they dropped in different places, and Kemp's Laker fell unconscious because he fell
0:17.0	on the potato field. And then at dawn, he wakes up, and he's not even sure where he is.
0:23.2	This is Cold War Conversations.
0:26.7	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to Cold War history.
0:31.1	Please make sure you follow us in your podcast app so you don't miss future episodes.
0:35.9	The Berlin Blockade was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War
0:40.6	when the Soviet Union blocked Western Allies rail, road and canal access to the sectors
0:45.9	of Berlin under Western control.
0:48.4	I speak with Joseph Pearson, the author of The Airlift, Victories, Myths and the Berlin Blockade.
0:54.1	This isn't your standard military
0:55.7	history. It draws on first-hand interviews and untapped sources from both German and Anglo-American
1:01.6	archives. Among the stories is the American pilot brought down over the Soviet zone, a Jewish
1:08.0	photographer struggling to reconcile with the Germans and the 17,000 women who built Tegel Airport.
1:14.9	I'm delighted to welcome Joseph Pearson to our Cold War conversation.
1:20.1	Before we start, I want to let you know if you're listening to this episode within the first week of publication, then you can take part in our book giveaway.
1:29.3	Look for the link in the episode information.
1:32.7	Well, I think one of the reasons I decided to write this book was that I was dissatisfied
1:36.8	with the narrative that I had been reading. I mean, I had read many books about the Berlin
1:40.9	because I'm a Canadian living in Berlin, and I don't live
1:44.3	that far away from Templehof Airport, where a lot of the drama of these planes landing took
	...

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