740.00119 Control (Germany)/12–1445
Minutes of the Thirteenth Meeting of the Control Council, Held at Berlin, November 30, 1945, at 2 p.m.79
CONL/M(45)13
There Were Present:
| Marshal of the Soviet Union Zhukov (Chairman) | ||
| General McNarney | ||
| Field Marshal Montgomery | ||
| Lt. General Koenig | ||
| Others Present: | ||
| Soviet | American | |
| Army General Sokolovsky | Lt. General Clay | |
| Minister Semenov | Ambassador Murphy | |
| Col. General Serov | Major General Echols | |
| Major General Trusov | Brigadier General Milburn | |
| British | France | |
| Sir William Strang | Lt. General Koeltz | |
| Admiral Burrough | Monsieur De la Tournelle | |
| Lt. General Robertson | ||
| Air Marshal Wigglesworth | ||
| Maj. General Playfair | ||
| Secretariat | ||
| First Secretary Kudriavtsev | ||
| Major Kudriavtsev | ||
| Colonel Gerhardt | ||
| Colonel Birdsall | ||
| Brigadier Grazebrook | ||
| Lt. Colonel Greenwood | ||
| Monsieur Calvy | ||
| Captain Joos |
. . . . . . .
110. Proposed Air Routes for Inter-Zonal Flights.
The Meeting had before them CONL/P(45)63.80
Marshal Zhukov81 recalled that the Coordinating Committee had approved the establishing of three air corridors, namely, Berlin–Hamburg, Berlin–Bückeburg and Berlin–Frankfurt-on-Main.
Field Marshal Montgomery82 expressed the hope that in due course the question of establishing the remaining air corridors would be settled satisfactorily.
[Page 1583]General Koenig83 approved the paper in principle and shared the opinion of Field Marshal Montgomery.
Marshal Zhukov expressed himself confident that in due course the other air corridors would be opened. He added that he would like to make a proposal on this paper. He assumed that his colleagues would give the Soviet military authorities the right to fly along these air corridors into the Western zones and would consent to put at their disposal appropriate airfields for landing Soviet aircraft, or at least allow Soviet ground staffs on terminal and intermediate airfields along the proposed air corridors to facilitate the servicing of Soviet aircraft. The reason which Marshal Zhukov gave for the necessity of establishing Soviet airfields in the Western zones was the work of dismantling plants for deliveries on account of reparations when it comes to sending Soviet experts to organise that work.
Field Marshal Montgomery stated that in his zone he would afford every facility for Soviet aircraft.
Marshal Zhukov said that he would like to clarify his declaration, namely, he proposed that appropriate airfields should be placed at the disposal of the Soviet authorities in the Western zones, or that permission should be given for Soviet ground crews for the servicing of Soviet aircraft to be stationed at these airfields.
Field Marshal Montgomery proposed to refer the proposal made by the head of the Soviet delegation to the Air Directorate for examination. He asked whether his understanding was correct that the question of the three air corridors from the Western zones to Berlin was settled and that the organisation of these air corridors could be started immediately, without awaiting the results of the examination of the Soviet proposal.
Marshal Zhukov observed that he considered the paper accepted and expressed the hope that the proposal of the Soviet delegation on placing airfields in the Western zones at the disposal of the Soviet authorities would meet with full sympathy on the part of his colleagues.
The Meeting
(110) (a) approved the establishment of three air corridors from Berlin to the Western zones as defined in CONL/P(45)63
(b) agreed to refer the proposal of the Soviet delegation on the placing of airfields at the disposal of the Soviet authorities or the setting up of Soviet ground crews in the Western zones to the Air Directorate for study.
. . . . . . .
- Copy transmitted to the Department as an enclosure to despatch 1498, December 14, from Berlin, not printed.↩
- Supra.↩
- Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov, Chief of the Soviet Military Administration in Germany, and Soviet member of the Control Council.↩
- Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery, Military Governor, British Zone of Occupation in Germany, and British member of the Control Council.↩
- Lt. Gen. Marie-Pierre Koenig, Military Governor of the French Zone of Occupation in Germany, and French member of the Control Council.↩