Berlin was not an easy airport to fly into because of the 3 corridors that flew over East Germany.
Germany was divided by West Germany occupied by the Allies, and East Germany occupied by the Soviets.
Berlin was in the center of East Germany and it was also divided by East (Soviet) and West (Allies)
To get to Berlin there were 3 air corridors that flew over East Germany. Straying outside the corridors would risk getting shot down. Planes had to fly at a maximum of 10,000 feet (which eats a tremendous amount of jet fuel at that low altitude) at a given speed, and you couldn't overtake a slower aircraft in front of you. So the speed was also regulated.
When I went to Berlin several times it was a flight from Frankfurt, and we took the central corridor, which was the shortest route that cost the less in fuel burn.
Pan Am also had a crew base in Berlin. It was called the IGS (Inter German Service) where they flew flights into and out of Berlin to other German cities, using 727's and later, A310's. Most, if not all, of the IGS FA's were German.
Most of the pilots were single and they could travel into East Germany without any problems. According to stories my friends who were based there told me, the pilots went to East Berlin for the women. The women were attracted to the American men because they could bring items to them that were not available in East Germany, and they had money, which was very scarce in E Germany.
So, some of the over zealous pilots had an East German girl friend, and a West German girl friend. The West German girl friend in many cases lived with the pilot. The pilots who wanted even more girl friends wouldn't have a live-in girl friend, so he was more free to see several West German women, plus the East German woman, or women.
When the wall came down, the fit hit the shan. The East German girl friends came rushing over, only to discover that they were not the only one, and I'm told there were some very uncomfortable moments.
Pan Am was heavily involved during the Berlin Airlift
Pan Am has been involved in Germany for many years. During 1948, when the Soviets shut down all the land and sea routes into West Berlin so that vital food and supplies couldn't reach them, the Berlin Airlift began, and lasted for around 11 months.
Food and supplies were airlifted into Berlin by the Air Force and a few civilian airlines, including Pan Am. Captain Jack Bennett, in the video below was one of those Pan Am Captains.
Capt. Jack Bennett, 86, a Berlin Airlift Hero - Obituary; Biography - NYTimes.com
During the Berlin Airlift, one pilot started dropping candy for the kids. He became famous as the "Candy Bomber", and other Airlift pilots began doing the same thing. The Berlin Airlift was crucial in that if it failed we would have probably entered into WW3 with Russia.
THE "CANDY BOMBER" OF THE BERLIN AIRLIFT, 60 YEARS LATER - YouTube
The Candy Bombers - Part 2 - YouTube
Here's a short video of the Berlin wall history.
Rise and fall of the Berlin wall - YouTube
The Berlin Wall Falls 1989 NBC Coverage Pt1 - YouTube
In 1991, Pan Am sold it's North American routes to Delta Airlines. The following year Pan Am closed it's doors. I was flying the European routes from New York on the A310 and Delta needed a turn key system because they didn't have any pilots trained on the A310. So I went to Delta with that route sale, and flew for Delta for about another year before retiring.
For Pan Am, the End of an Aviation Era - NYTimes.com
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