Cold War Conversations

In 1986 GDR student Antje met a British guy who was installing sewing machines in the hosiery companies in East Germany. Unusually he was given quite a bit of freedom to socialise locally and he eventually asked Antje to marry him. However, with her prospective husband being a citizen of the capitalist West the process was far from simple...

Now talking of the Capitalist West I’m sure you know some of our fans who are helping the podcast monthly via Patreon, so if you’d like to join this select band? Then head over to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ plus you get the sought after CWC coaster too.

Back to today’s episode, Antje describes her early life in the GDR and how romance blossomed between East & West, despite the best efforts of East German bureaucracy to thwart the union. Now the story does have somewhat of a twist towards the end so make sure you keep listening.

If you enjoyed this episode here is the other side of the coin. Genuine laugh out loud moments. "A 22 year old Briton working in East Germany (170)"

We recorded our chat at The Barbican Centre in London, so excuse any background noise, I’m delighted to welcome Antje to Cold War Conversations

Radio GDR

If you are interested in East Germany we can highly recommend our friends over at Radio GDR.

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Maura McCormick was posted to Berlin as a Signals Intelligence voice interceptor (Russian). Her workplace was the Teufelsberg U.S. listening station, aka Field Station Berlin.

Maura shares her early impressions of Berlin and working at the Tberg. She talks about her impressions of the infamous James Hall, a United States Army warrant officer and signals intelligence analyst who sold eavesdropping and code secrets to East Germany and the Soviet Union from 1983 to 1988.

Maura also recounts a close call with Hüseyin Yıldırım, a Turkish-American auto mechanic who was a Stasi courier for the espionage activities of James Hall.

Maura often visited East Berlin where she tells of an unusually close encounter with a chimney sweep that almost resulted in an international incident.

In West Berlin, Maura became the first woman to graduate from French Commando school. The commandant had a nightly call to Paris to confirm that she had survived the day's training...

Now if you think there is a vast army of research assistants, audio engineers and producers putting together this podcast you’d be wrong. This podcast relies on your support to enable me to continue to capture these incredible stories and make them available to everyone for free.

If you’d like to help to preserve Cold War history and enable me to continue to produce this podcast you can via one-off or monthly donations.

Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ for more details.

Do join our Facebook discussion group where the cold war conversation continues between episodes. Just search Cold War Conversations on Facebook.

0:00 Introduction and Maura McCormick's role in the Cold War

2:35 Interview with Maura McCormick begins

5:56 Maura's first posting in Berlin and impressions of West Berlin

16:21 Maura's interaction with Stasi spies James Hall and Hüseyin Yıldırım

24:52 Maura's acclimatization trip to East Germany and encounters

36:04 Maura's experiences in East Berlin and close encounter with East German leader

44:13 Maura's interactions with East Germans

48:40 How Maura ended up in French Commando school and her training experiences

1:00:53 Exploring Berlin through books and films

1:07:25 Accidental crossing of the border and reflections on Berlin

1:13:15 First impressions of the Berlin Wall and questioning the depth of the Cold War victory

1:14:28 Acknowledgement of the podcast's patrons and invitation to join the Facebook group

1:15:19 Closing remarks and promotion of the podcast store

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More info and videos related to this episode here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode227/

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This week is the 40th anniversary of the Able Archer NATO Exercise where it is reckoned that the Soviet Union and NATO almost started a nuclear war.

1990 an investigation by the US President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board, culminating in its highly secret report “The Soviet ‘War Scare’” The detailed PFIAB report concluded that the U.S. “may have inadvertently placed our relations with the Soviet Union on a hair trigger”.

The following is an audio version of the talk I delivered to the Manchester Military History Society in October 2023.

Documents, videos, and other extra episode information here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode316

The fight to preserve Cold War history continues and viaa simple monthly donation, you will give me the ammunition to continue to 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.

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Love history? Check out Into History at this link https://intohistory.com/coldwarpod

0:00 Introduction and overview of the episode

1:14 Comparison of the 1983 crisis and the Cuban missile crisis

2:38 Detente and the state of US/Soviet relations in the 1970s & early 80s

4:24 Introduction Ronald Reagan and his policies

5:25 Introduction to Yuri Andropov and his policies

8:56 Soviet intelligence Operation Ryan's purpose and indicators

12:49 Fleetex 83 US naval exercise appears to confirm Soviet suspicions that US is planning an attack

16:33 The downing of Korean Airlines Flight 007

22:30 Incidents soon after the Korean Airlines shootdown

26:08 Soviet early warning system warns of US missile attack

30:06 The US military intervention in Grenada

34:21 Brigadier General Leonard H Perroot's role in averting a nuclear war during Able Archer 83

41:43 Double agent's contributions to Western intelligence

51:26 Controversy about how close we came to nuclear war around Able Archer

54:30 Acknowledgement of financial supporters and continuation of Cold War conversation on Facebook

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In 1964, pilot Captain Hansen found himself unemployed. He began to send out feelers to several companies including one that had placed an ad in the Washington Post called Air America. When he was called in for an interview which primarily consisted of two questions - can you fly good and do you drink a lot.

Air America was the airline owned by the CIA. Its operations were unknown. Its schedules were irregular. Its pilots were shadow people. Its world was the world of spooks, covert air ops, adventure, and danger. Hansen would be flying in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and other locations in Southeast Asia. It could not have been a better fit for Hansen, an addicted adrenaline junkie. He would end up staying in Asia for over a decade and was fortunate enough to live to tell us about it in his book “Flight”

Buy Neil's book here

Cold War history is disappearing; however a simple monthly donation will help preserve it and keep this podcast on the air. You’ll 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 financial contribution is not your cup of tea, then you can still help us by leaving written reviews wherever you listen to us as well as sharing us on social media. It really helps us get new guests on the show.

I am delighted to welcome Neil Hansen to our Cold War conversation...

Further information is here. https://coldwarconversations.com/episode233/

0:00 Introduction of guest, Neil Hansen, and his journey with Air America

2:02 Call for financial support for the Cold War Conversations podcast

3:35 Hansen's recruitment and early experiences with Air America

13:31 Hansen's black flight missions and promotion within Air America

20:13 Hansen's unique flight training methods and handling emergencies

26:12 Planning missions and gathering intelligence in Vietnam and Laos

30:53 Hansen's first-hand account of the Tet Offensive

41:21 Navigating the dangers and challenges in Laos during the Cold War

1:00:01 Hansen's harrowing experience of being shot down and bailing out

1:04:07 The last flight out of Cambodia: Neil Hansen's escape and reflection

1:20:26 Neil Hansen's fight for recognition, his book, and concluding remarks

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If you can’t wait for next week’s episode do visit our Facebook discussion group where guests and listeners continue the Cold War Conversation. Just search Cold War Conversations in Facebook.

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The British Nuclear Test Veterans Association (BNTVA) is the Charity for UK Nuclear Veterans and last year they very kindly invited me to the annual conference. I met many veterans including Peter Lambourne and this is his story.

Peter joined the Royal Navy aged 15. He describes those early days including serving on HMS Wizard during the Cod War with Iceland in 1961.

In 1962 Peter was then posted to HMS Resolution which was the codename for the nuclear bomb testing base on Christmas Island.

Peter’s base was less than 20 miles away from where hydrogen bombs were being detonated and he shares his experiences of those detonations.

Many servicemen and islanders who were present at Christmas Island from 1957 to 1962 later reported severe health problems, which they attributed to the nuclear bomb tests – from cancers to organ failure. Whilst Peter’s health has appeared unaffected, his children and grandchildren have suffered from cancers.

In 2023 the UK finally awarded a medal to the nuclear test veterans.

Now if you think there is a vast army of research assistants, audio engineers and producers putting together this podcast you’d be wrong. This podcast relies on your support to enable me to continue to capture these incredible stories and make them available to everyone for free.

If you’d like to help to preserve Cold War history and enable me to continue to produce this podcast you can via one off or monthly donations.

Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ for more details.

Do join our Facebook discussion group where the cold war conversation continues between episodes. Just search Cold War Conversations on Facebook.

0:00 Introduction and Peter Lambourne's background

1:06 Peter's posting to HMS Resolution and nuclear bomb testing on Christmas Island

2:29 Call for podcast support and donations

3:33 Peter's experience in the Cod War with Iceland and posting to Christmas Island

12:10 Witnessing hydrogen bomb detonations on Christmas Island

17:06 The terrifying contingency plans and impracticality of their landing crafts

21:01 Lack of protective clothing and radiation tracking

24:33 Recreational activities and dynamics of the Navy group on Christmas Island

29:47 The mystery of the "big black line" in Peter's service record and the classified nature of the mission

34:05 The health effects of radiation exposure and the government's avoidance of liability

38:09 Reflections on Christmas Island as part of Peter's naval career

42:57 Closing remarks and thanks to patrons

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The British Nuclear Test Veterans Association (BNTVA) is the Charity for UK Nuclear Veterans https://www.bntva.com/

There’s further information including videos and photos on this episode here. https://coldwarconversations.com/episode224

Thank you very much for listening. It is really appreciated – goodbye.

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