Helena Schrader's Historical Fiction: Bridge to Tomorrow: A Novel of the Berlin Airlift in Three Parts

On 24 June 1948, the Soviet Union imposed a blockade on the Western Sectors of Berlin. This cut off roughly 2.2 million civilians from food, fuel, electricity, and all other necessities of life. The Western Powers faced the choice between withdrawing from Berlin or using force to bring the vitally needed goods across the Soviet Zone to the people of Berlin. The world stood poised on the brink of the Third World War.

Withdrawal would have rewarded Stalin’s callous use of two million civilians as hostages and enabled the Soviet Union to absorb all of Berlin into the communist East. Yet the use of force risked provoking an armed response in the heart of Europe. Rather than risk war or concede defeat, the leadership in London and Washington decided to attempt to supply the city entirely by air.

This was seen as a stop-gap measure. It was intended to buy time for diplomacy. No one in Washington, London, or Berlin seriously believed it would be possible to supply more than two million inhabitants by air alone. Yet against the odds, the Airlift proved successful, and the Soviet Union gave up the Blockade after eleven months. The Berlin Airlift represented the first Western victory in the Cold War and remains to this day a dramatic example of a successful, non-violent response to aggression.

Yet while people may have heard of the Berlin Airlift, few realize how close it came to failing or fully grasp its significance. The Berlin Airlift brought about a fundamental transformation in the character and ideological orientation of post-war Germany. It transformed enemies into allies. It contributed materially to the establishment of the Federal Republic of Germany, NATO and ultimately the European Union.

As a long-time resident of Berlin, the Berlin Airlift always inspired me, yet I did not study the topic in earnest until The History Press in the UK commissioned me to write a book for the 60th Anniversary. At the time, many German, American and British participants were still alive. So, in addition to the usual scholarly research, I contacted eyewitnesses, starting with those still living in Berlin. I had the great privilege of corresponding with Gail Halvorsen, the famous “Candy Bomber” himself, and I also travelled to the UK to interview many British participants. These encounters planted the seeds for a novel -- or two.

Yet while the topic attracted me, it daunted me as well. The situation in Berlin in 1948-1949 was extremely complicated. The cast of characters was great and diverse. The relationship between the various actors was fluid and nuanced. Focus on a single character or plot line promised only to distort and oversimplify the historical situation. I chose, therefore, to create an expansive, inclusive and intricate novel intended to do justice to the complexity of the situation.

The richness of the material demanded breaking the story into phases. The Airlift cannot be appreciated without first comprehending the situation in Berlin before the Soviet blockade. Berlin in 1948 was unlike any other place on earth. The scale of destruction and the depth of the psychological trauma exceeded that of Tokyo, Frankfurt, or Rome. In addition, the simultaneous presence of all four wartime allies in the city created unique political pressures and fissures. The result was a poisonous cocktail composed of crime, terror, mutual suspicion and widespread hopelessness.

Instead of a single volume, a trilogy subsumed under the overarching title Bridge to Tomorrow evolved. The title springs from the German term for the Airlift, “Luftbruecke,” which translates literally as “Air Bridge,” and the fact the Airlift was a pivotal turning point between the post-war era and the Cold War. Cold Peace is the first volume in the trilogy and covers the period from late 1947 to the end of June 1948. It introduces most — but not all — of the major characters in the complete work Bridge to Tomorrow. In the weeks ahead I will be introducing the individual characters on this blog.

Cold Peace is Book I of the Bridge to Tomorrow Series.

Three years after WWII, Europe struggles with rationing, widespread unemployment and a growing Soviet threat. Hitler's former capital lies ruined under the joint control of wartime allies bitterly at odds. With the currency worthless, the population lives on hand-outs or turns to crime and prostitution. Deep inside the Soviet Zone of occupation, Berlin appears to be an ideal target for a communist take-over, putting the defenders of democracy on a collision course with Stalin's merciless aggression.

A Battle of Britain ace, a female air traffic controller, a concentration camp survivor and an ex-ATA woman pilot are just some of those trying to find their place in the post-war world. An air ambulance service offers a shimmer of hope, but when a Soviet fighter brings down a British passenger liner, Berlin becomes a flashpoint. The world stands poised on the brink of World War Three.