Soviet "Booking’ Of Air Space Defied

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29746, 13 February 1962, Page 9

Soviet "Booking’ Of Air Space Defied

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) BERLIN, February 10. President Kennedy’s personal representative in Berlin, General Lucius Clay, yesterday defied a Russian attempt to “reserve" certain sections of the Berlin air corridors for Soviet military traffic.

Accompanied by West Berlin's Mayor (Mr Willy Brandt), he flew in his private aeroplane along the Hamburg corridor between 8.50 am. and 12.50 pm., the period the Russians wanted it reserved. An Allied spokesman said Britain, the United States and France had ignored the Russian warning against flights at certain altitudes in the Berlin corridors by continuing normal civil traffic and increasing military flights in the sectors concerned.

The flights were made without incident and pilots had not seen any Soviet military aircraft, the spokesman said.

He said the attempt was aimed at testing Western reaction. Soviet air manoeuvres had often been held in the Berlin air corridor, but, in the past, the Russians had merely informed the Allies of the plans and had not asked for a specific reservation, the spokesman said.

The Russians had requested reservation of all altitudes up to 7000 ft in the Berlin-Frankfurt corridor for three hours 20 minutes on Thursday and up to 7500 ft in the Berlin-Hamburg and Berlin-Hanover corridors for four hours yesterday. On both occasions, the three Western controllers immediately informed the Russians that Soviet aircraft flying in the corridors would have to abide by agreed

four-Power rules for such flights. “Reserving’’ of altitudes in the corridors had no basis in those rules, the spokesman said.