Berlin Brigade
After the end of World War II, under the conditions of the Yalta and Potsdam agreements, the Allied forces occupied West Berlin.
These rotations, shared with British, French and Soviet soldiers, continued until Spandau's last prisoner, Rudolf Hess, died in 1987.
Until the end of the Cold War, members of the brigade were eligible for the Army of Occupation Medal with Germany clasp.
When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the operational structure of the brigade was as follows: Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence (DCSI or 'Dixie') 'Flag Tours' was administered from Building 2, Clay Headquarters, coordinated with The U.S. Army Military Liaison Mission in Berlin, to conduct visual intelligence gathering utilizing the existing 'Flag Tours'.
The agreements between the allied nations and the Soviet Union permitted the deployment of U.S. Army military observers within a 100-mile (161-km) radius of the center of Berlin, for the twofold reason of maintaining the Quadripartite Treaty (i.e. bans on specific weapon types) and the purpose of 'Showing the Flag'.
U.S. Military intelligence units within Berlin, such as Brigade G-2 and 766 MID, augmented Flag Tour personnel during specific 'high-value' Intelligence-gathering events, such as named training exercises or the May Day Parade.
Teams were equipped with high-performance Ford Merkur Scorpio sedans, which were capable of easily evading the East German & Soviet military police driving Ladas, Volgas and Wartburgs.
Intelligence analysts were equipped with secure communications and cameras (often using East German Zeiss Ikon lenses) for recording vehicles, tactics and persons of interest.
The U.S. Army also maintained propeller-driven aircraft, stationed at Templehof Airport, to conduct aerial observation of the forces within the 100-mile radius surrounding the city.
They served with a multinational "Allied Ground Combat Force" that also included British, French, Italian, Dutch, and Turkish infantry companies.
Based in Silopi, Turkey, near the Iraqi border, from July to October 1991, these ground forces were soon withdrawn to avoid entanglement in the local Turkish-PKK conflict and because it was decided that the US Air Force presence at Incirlik constituted an adequate deterrent to Iraqi attempts at encroaching on the Kurdish autonomous zone.
The 287th Military Police Company was the only US Army MP unit to use boats for water patrol along the border to East Germany.
The Berlin Brigade Aviation Detachment at Tempelhof Central Airport was the last US Army unit worldwide to use the DeHavilland Canada U-6 Beaver, when retired in January 1980.
