Special Forces Berlin

Clandestine Cold War Operations of the US Army's Elite, 1956-1990

By: James Stejskal

Narrated by: Tim Campbell

Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

The massive armies of the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies posed a huge threat to the nations of Western Europe. US military planners decided they needed a plan to slow the juggernaut they expected when and if a war began. The plan was Special Forces Berlin. Their mission, should hostilities commence, was to wreak havoc behind enemy lines and buy time for vastly outnumbered NATO forces to conduct a breakout from the city. In reality it was an ambitious and extremely dangerous mission, even suicidal. Highly trained and fluent in German, each man was allocated a specific area. They were skilled in clandestine operations, sabotage, and intelligence tradecraft and able to act as independent operators, blending into the local population and working unseen in a city awash with spies looking for information on their every move. Special Forces Berlin was a one of a kind unit that had no parallel. It left a legacy of a new type of soldier expert in unconventional warfare, one that was sought after for missions such as the attempted rescue of American hostages from Tehran in 1979. With the US government officially acknowledging their existence in 2014, their incredible story can now be told.

©2017 James Stejskal (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Reads like a thriller for much of the time - a small, select force ready for action should the Soviets escalate their activities in Western Europe - nothing much has changed in the last sixty years or so!" ( Books Monthly)

Great Untold Story

it's amazing to hear all the great things that happened years ago that were classified that have now become available to the public. our military is absolutely amazing along with the men and women who serve

Good stuff

For those not extremely interested in the history of SF in Berlin, this may be tedious. For those, like me, who have a deep interest, it will be a treasure trove of information and anecdotes. Welcome to the hidden world and war in Berlin and the SF warriors who stood ready to fight in it.

What an amazing book.

If you're a student of history, especially Special Forces and Special Operations, do yourself a solid and get this.

Phenomenal history lesson!

Just awesome. Stories like this need to be taught in schools. Units like SF Berlin are suppose to be a secret but when they are unclassified it is great to learn about. You will not be disappointed!

Loved it!!! Excellent Fantastic Narration

Peek behind the scenes of the Top secret world of Special Missions Units. Before there was Delta Force or the CAG there was Detachment Alpha in Berlin. Before SEAL TEAM SIX or DEVGRU Special Forces Mission Berlin was already up and running. You learn about it's creation, training and missions and finally it's decommissioning.

Accurate Historical Reading

Great accuracy and attention to detail in this well written, and read book. If you were in the service during this time period this book is for you. This book answered several questions for me as I was stationed in Berlin both during and after the "Berlin Wall."

Interesting stories but not compelling

Stories are clogged with military acronyms; the narrator sounds like a robot. But glad to know these soldiers were well trained and prepared to do difficult tasks if war ever broke out.

Simply great.

I enjoyed it very much, heard about it with on jacko or we hold thses troths podcast… can’t remember, but i was very impressed, bought it and im very satisfied.

Great book, narrator was off.

Fantastic telling of an often overlooked aspect of US special forces. could have used a better narrator.

Amazing story of the unsung hero's of the cold war

This was recommended by Batman aka Delta operator Pat McNamara who was in this unit. I found it completely interesting and their use in the Eagle Claw Operation was unknown to me. GREAT BOOK!