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1000 Hours Kiel Airport Germany, 18 April, 2011
General Fischer and Director Freeman disembarked from the Army OH-58D helicopter on the tarmac of the airport. They had travelled up from Munich that morning with intelligence imagery and documents to brief the command staff of the German Army. The General thought to himself that Director Freeman had been prudent in contacting the DIA station in Portsmouth. The reconnaissance flight over Romania had revealed a lot of new intelligence about Soviet capabilities. Portsmouth would get word to the Military Government in Colorado Springs through the Navy who kept a ship on station in the Atlantic to keep a communications links with America open. Although Colorado Springs or US forces on the East Coast would not be able to send reinforcements, they could fund or put pressure on the British to supply them with some precious diesel and aviation fuel.
A Luftwaffe Captain saluted Fischer and Freeman and escorted them inside the main terminal of the airport. General Fischer remarked to the German Captain that the airport was in very good condition and looked like it hadn't been affected by the war at all. The Captain replied that reconstruction of the country was now a top priority for the government and Schleswig was now one of the most recovered and stable parts of Germany, although establishing regular power supplies was still a problem to them. On the first floor of the building the Captain directed Fischer and Freeman to a large conference room, were a military police Sergeant led them inside as a team of heavily armed Federal Border Guards in black jump suits carefully scrutinized them.
Inside the conference room a number of high ranking officers were seated around a large table with a detailed map of Central Europe and the Balkans on the wall in the background. The officer seated at the head of the table welcomed them and then introduced them to the assembled officers in the room.
"Good Morning Gentlemen I hope you had a good flight up from Munich I am General Halder the acting Defence Chief of Staff of the Bundewehr. I expect you already know General Korner of the First German Army in the south. The other men at our table are the commanders of the Second and Third German Armies, the Eight Austrian Corp, the Luftwaffe, the director of Germany's Military Counterintelligence Service and General Mackenzie of the British Army. General Fischer how long have you known about the recent developments in the east"
"General Halder we received word last week from the command of Civilian Government forces in Serbia about a major increase in Soviet military activity in Romania. Without any tangible assets on the ground in Romania to confirm this information, we sent a reconnaissance flight over Romania a few days ago to assess a number of targets of interest to us. We also informed the First Germany Army of our concerns which General Korner will confirm".
"General Fischer why did the US Civilian Government approach you"
"We believe they were sufficiently alarmed about the developing situation in Romania which had been reported to them by their agents over the past few weeks. They came to the conclusion that Warsaw Pact forces in Romania were massing for either a push into Yugoslavia against them or against NATO through Austrian territory. They believed that a move against Yugoslavia would make their position in Serbia untenable".
"General did your reconnaissance reveal any new information about the Civilian Governments concerns"
"Yes we obtained significant aerial photo-imagery of a number of targets in Romania and Hungary in addition to obtaining intelligence supplied to us by Civilian Government agents on the ground. The director and I have imagery samples and documents in our brief case to present to you about our concerns".
Fischer walked towards the large map on the wall as Freeman handed out prepared intelligence briefings to the seated officers. Pointing to map Fischer highlighted Ploesti.
"Gentleman we believe Ploesti is central to what the Soviets are up to. We have known for some years that there were active oil wells in the Ploesti area. However our reconnaissance flight also detected evidence of an active oil refinery on the outskirts of the city including intact industrial and refining infrastructure, visible emissions and recent industrial waste. Imagery also pointed to fuel storage in locations across the city and the presence of large military forces with military vehicles. Additional reconnaissance of Warsaw Pact garrisons in Romania and Hungary has also confirmed concentrations of armored forces, and detected military convoys on highways and evidence of operational aircraft at air bases. Although the deployment of Warsaw Pact air and mechanized forces is of concern to us, an oil refinery capable of producing petroleum and aviation fuel is critically important to our defense position in Central Europe. Intelligence from our agents behind the lines in Austria has also reported an increase in Soviet activity, and our reconnaissance flight over Romania was engaged by active Soviet air defences and pursued into Austria by Soviet fighter aircraft".
"General this news is alarming. If the Soviets have regular fuel supplies they can mobilise their forces and move reinforcements from the Soviet Union. With air power they could march all the way to the Rhine or the English Channel"
"General Halder our intelligence did point to an increase in Soviet military forces and the presence of military aircraft. But the size of the forces we detected was significant rather than massive. Without access to satellite imagery we can give no accurate assessment of the level of their forces. However the fact that they seem to have access to regular refined fuel supplies is of greatest concern to us".
"Do you have any idea what their planning"
"General we believe their preparing for a renewal of offensive action. They may be planning a move against Yugoslavia, but we consider it more likely they are planning to attack Austria. It may also just be just a ploy to draw our forces south to relieve their position in Poland, and it could be a combination of all of these scenarios. But the fact that they have operational airpower means they can simultaneously attack across many fronts".
"General Fischer our own intelligence sources in Poland point to the Soviets being largely incapable of sustained offensive action against NATO forces. Although they still retain large forces in eastern Poland, their reliability is questionable. For quite some time they have shown no appetite to engage any major NATO force beyond defensive actions, and most of Poland is in now in turmoil with the Polish military having split into many factions".
"General Halder that matches our own assessment of Soviet capabilities in Poland, although we believe Czech and Hungarian forces are a lot more cohesive than the Poles. The exact role of Czechoslovakia and Hungary in Soviet plans is uncertain, but if they are involved we can expect the main focus of the Warsaw Pact offensive to be towards Austria. If Soviet forces advance on a wider front through Austria and Czechoslovakia they will directly invade Southern Germany, which means that the First German Army will have to be reinforced from other NATO commands which could affect the integrity of other fronts. The US Fourth Army is prepared to defend Austrian and German territory".
"General Fischer how prepared are American forces in Europe"
"It would be difficult to quickly transfer the US XI Corps in Northern Poland to Southern Germany due to fuel shortages, war weariness and poor road conditions in Poland. Unfortunately much of our armored forces are with the XI Corps. However forces of the US Fourth Army in Southern Germany are already highly integrated with the First German Army and at a relatively high state of readiness. We also retain significant stocks of armored vehicles and weapons inherited from the departing US Seventh Army. The Civilian Government in Yugoslavia has also agreed to rejoin NATO and place the three divisions of the US IV Corps under Fourth Army command. The IV Corps is currently preparing to evacuate Serbia through Slovenian territory. The Seventeen Air Force retains well over 30 operational aircraft and could draw on additional reinforcements from the Third Air Force in the UK in an emergency. However aviation fuel is in short supply and at present we could not sustain extended combat operations. Basically lack of all types of fuel is our main problem at the moment".
General Mackenzie joined the discussion for the first time." General Fischer you are aware that British forces have access to oil supplies and have an oil refining capacity
"Yes I am General and I was waiting for you to mention it. We assume that the Soviets are unaware that British forces have reactivated the Teeside oil refinery; if they did I doubt they would be planning to resume any offensive action. I don't have the authority to ask the British Government to supply NATO forces in Europe with fuel supplies, but Director Freeman has informed Colorado Springs about our defence concerns and our diplomats in Portsmouth".
"I'm glad you have General as unfortunately I have no control over British fuel supplies to either our own forces or our allies in Germany. However the defence position of the British Army in Germany will be compromised by a new Soviet offensive against NATO territory, and I will be happy to communicate all the issues and concerns from your briefing to our commanders in the UK as soon as possible".
"If you can help that would be appreciated General Mackenzie. General Halder my staff discussed a few proposals with General Korner in Munich before we departed for Kiel about how we might best prepare our forces in Austria and Bavaria. All we can really do at the moment is prepare a strategy for containing any Warsaw Pact offensive against us and organise our forces to stop it".
General Fischer and Director Freeman disembarked from the Army OH-58D helicopter on the tarmac of the airport. They had travelled up from Munich that morning with intelligence imagery and documents to brief the command staff of the German Army. The General thought to himself that Director Freeman had been prudent in contacting the DIA station in Portsmouth. The reconnaissance flight over Romania had revealed a lot of new intelligence about Soviet capabilities. Portsmouth would get word to the Military Government in Colorado Springs through the Navy who kept a ship on station in the Atlantic to keep a communications links with America open. Although Colorado Springs or US forces on the East Coast would not be able to send reinforcements, they could fund or put pressure on the British to supply them with some precious diesel and aviation fuel.
A Luftwaffe Captain saluted Fischer and Freeman and escorted them inside the main terminal of the airport. General Fischer remarked to the German Captain that the airport was in very good condition and looked like it hadn't been affected by the war at all. The Captain replied that reconstruction of the country was now a top priority for the government and Schleswig was now one of the most recovered and stable parts of Germany, although establishing regular power supplies was still a problem to them. On the first floor of the building the Captain directed Fischer and Freeman to a large conference room, were a military police Sergeant led them inside as a team of heavily armed Federal Border Guards in black jump suits carefully scrutinized them.
Inside the conference room a number of high ranking officers were seated around a large table with a detailed map of Central Europe and the Balkans on the wall in the background. The officer seated at the head of the table welcomed them and then introduced them to the assembled officers in the room.
"Good Morning Gentlemen I hope you had a good flight up from Munich I am General Halder the acting Defence Chief of Staff of the Bundewehr. I expect you already know General Korner of the First German Army in the south. The other men at our table are the commanders of the Second and Third German Armies, the Eight Austrian Corp, the Luftwaffe, the director of Germany's Military Counterintelligence Service and General Mackenzie of the British Army. General Fischer how long have you known about the recent developments in the east"
"General Halder we received word last week from the command of Civilian Government forces in Serbia about a major increase in Soviet military activity in Romania. Without any tangible assets on the ground in Romania to confirm this information, we sent a reconnaissance flight over Romania a few days ago to assess a number of targets of interest to us. We also informed the First Germany Army of our concerns which General Korner will confirm".
"General Fischer why did the US Civilian Government approach you"
"We believe they were sufficiently alarmed about the developing situation in Romania which had been reported to them by their agents over the past few weeks. They came to the conclusion that Warsaw Pact forces in Romania were massing for either a push into Yugoslavia against them or against NATO through Austrian territory. They believed that a move against Yugoslavia would make their position in Serbia untenable".
"General did your reconnaissance reveal any new information about the Civilian Governments concerns"
"Yes we obtained significant aerial photo-imagery of a number of targets in Romania and Hungary in addition to obtaining intelligence supplied to us by Civilian Government agents on the ground. The director and I have imagery samples and documents in our brief case to present to you about our concerns".
Fischer walked towards the large map on the wall as Freeman handed out prepared intelligence briefings to the seated officers. Pointing to map Fischer highlighted Ploesti.
"Gentleman we believe Ploesti is central to what the Soviets are up to. We have known for some years that there were active oil wells in the Ploesti area. However our reconnaissance flight also detected evidence of an active oil refinery on the outskirts of the city including intact industrial and refining infrastructure, visible emissions and recent industrial waste. Imagery also pointed to fuel storage in locations across the city and the presence of large military forces with military vehicles. Additional reconnaissance of Warsaw Pact garrisons in Romania and Hungary has also confirmed concentrations of armored forces, and detected military convoys on highways and evidence of operational aircraft at air bases. Although the deployment of Warsaw Pact air and mechanized forces is of concern to us, an oil refinery capable of producing petroleum and aviation fuel is critically important to our defense position in Central Europe. Intelligence from our agents behind the lines in Austria has also reported an increase in Soviet activity, and our reconnaissance flight over Romania was engaged by active Soviet air defences and pursued into Austria by Soviet fighter aircraft".
"General this news is alarming. If the Soviets have regular fuel supplies they can mobilise their forces and move reinforcements from the Soviet Union. With air power they could march all the way to the Rhine or the English Channel"
"General Halder our intelligence did point to an increase in Soviet military forces and the presence of military aircraft. But the size of the forces we detected was significant rather than massive. Without access to satellite imagery we can give no accurate assessment of the level of their forces. However the fact that they seem to have access to regular refined fuel supplies is of greatest concern to us".
"Do you have any idea what their planning"
"General we believe their preparing for a renewal of offensive action. They may be planning a move against Yugoslavia, but we consider it more likely they are planning to attack Austria. It may also just be just a ploy to draw our forces south to relieve their position in Poland, and it could be a combination of all of these scenarios. But the fact that they have operational airpower means they can simultaneously attack across many fronts".
"General Fischer our own intelligence sources in Poland point to the Soviets being largely incapable of sustained offensive action against NATO forces. Although they still retain large forces in eastern Poland, their reliability is questionable. For quite some time they have shown no appetite to engage any major NATO force beyond defensive actions, and most of Poland is in now in turmoil with the Polish military having split into many factions".
"General Halder that matches our own assessment of Soviet capabilities in Poland, although we believe Czech and Hungarian forces are a lot more cohesive than the Poles. The exact role of Czechoslovakia and Hungary in Soviet plans is uncertain, but if they are involved we can expect the main focus of the Warsaw Pact offensive to be towards Austria. If Soviet forces advance on a wider front through Austria and Czechoslovakia they will directly invade Southern Germany, which means that the First German Army will have to be reinforced from other NATO commands which could affect the integrity of other fronts. The US Fourth Army is prepared to defend Austrian and German territory".
"General Fischer how prepared are American forces in Europe"
"It would be difficult to quickly transfer the US XI Corps in Northern Poland to Southern Germany due to fuel shortages, war weariness and poor road conditions in Poland. Unfortunately much of our armored forces are with the XI Corps. However forces of the US Fourth Army in Southern Germany are already highly integrated with the First German Army and at a relatively high state of readiness. We also retain significant stocks of armored vehicles and weapons inherited from the departing US Seventh Army. The Civilian Government in Yugoslavia has also agreed to rejoin NATO and place the three divisions of the US IV Corps under Fourth Army command. The IV Corps is currently preparing to evacuate Serbia through Slovenian territory. The Seventeen Air Force retains well over 30 operational aircraft and could draw on additional reinforcements from the Third Air Force in the UK in an emergency. However aviation fuel is in short supply and at present we could not sustain extended combat operations. Basically lack of all types of fuel is our main problem at the moment".
General Mackenzie joined the discussion for the first time." General Fischer you are aware that British forces have access to oil supplies and have an oil refining capacity
"Yes I am General and I was waiting for you to mention it. We assume that the Soviets are unaware that British forces have reactivated the Teeside oil refinery; if they did I doubt they would be planning to resume any offensive action. I don't have the authority to ask the British Government to supply NATO forces in Europe with fuel supplies, but Director Freeman has informed Colorado Springs about our defence concerns and our diplomats in Portsmouth".
"I'm glad you have General as unfortunately I have no control over British fuel supplies to either our own forces or our allies in Germany. However the defence position of the British Army in Germany will be compromised by a new Soviet offensive against NATO territory, and I will be happy to communicate all the issues and concerns from your briefing to our commanders in the UK as soon as possible".
"If you can help that would be appreciated General Mackenzie. General Halder my staff discussed a few proposals with General Korner in Munich before we departed for Kiel about how we might best prepare our forces in Austria and Bavaria. All we can really do at the moment is prepare a strategy for containing any Warsaw Pact offensive against us and organise our forces to stop it".
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