[WWII/TS/Covert Ops/Weird War II] Götterdämmerung on Walpurgisnacht

johndallman · 03-31-2015, 09:18 AM

Assuming they have the backing of OSS or SOE, and can pass for Germans, getting in should be possible. The best cover is as SS, since there are fewer people they have to explain themselves to, and SS being on special secret missions is plausible. Genuine German vehicles are not hard to come by at the Western front lines. So given fuel, well-forged identity papers, and a supercilious attitude, they can just drive to Berlin.

They don't want to be fleeing or wounded soldiers, or civilians, since those people were mostly heading west by this time to surrender. Heading for Berlin in a small group is implausible, unless you have some special mission. The risks along the way are ambushes from people who want their supplies and transport for their own mission, or for fleeing west to surrender, officers who want to take it and them for the same purposes, who can be got past with enough paperwork and attitude, and roving Allied fighter-bombers, whom you just have to hide from.

Once they're in Berlin, see Antony Beevor's Berlin: The Downfall 1945 for a good description of the situation. They're liable to get conscripted almost at random for units to fight in the defence, by people with direct orders from the Führer, so keeping a very low profile is advisable. The Führerprinzip was exploitable, but could bite back.

Getting back out again is harder. If they leave their vehicles unguarded, they will be stolen. Getting picked up by aircraft is conceivable, but the Berlin airfields are all subject to Soviet attack and ones further west will still have Luftwaffe ground troops with AAA even if they don't have much in the way of aircraft. Getting picked up by submarine is hard: Berlin is some way from the Baltic coast, and the Danish Straits are still heavily mined; the Western Allies have left the Baltic to the Soviets.

03-31-2015, 09:18 AM	#2
johndallman Night Watchman Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Cambridge, UK	Re: [WWII/TS/Covert Ops/Weird War II] Götterdämmerung on Walpurgisnacht Assuming they have the backing of OSS or SOE, and can pass for Germans, getting in should be possible. The best cover is as SS, since there are fewer people they have to explain themselves to, and SS being on special secret missions is plausible. Genuine German vehicles are not hard to come by at the Western front lines. So given fuel, well-forged identity papers, and a supercilious attitude, they can just drive to Berlin. They don't want to be fleeing or wounded soldiers, or civilians, since those people were mostly heading west by this time to surrender. Heading for Berlin in a small group is implausible, unless you have some special mission. The risks along the way are ambushes from people who want their supplies and transport for their own mission, or for fleeing west to surrender, officers who want to take it and them for the same purposes, who can be got past with enough paperwork and attitude, and roving Allied fighter-bombers, whom you just have to hide from. Once they're in Berlin, see Antony Beevor's Berlin: The Downfall 1945 for a good description of the situation. They're liable to get conscripted almost at random for units to fight in the defence, by people with direct orders from the Führer, so keeping a very low profile is advisable. The Führerprinzip was exploitable, but could bite back. Getting back out again is harder. If they leave their vehicles unguarded, they will be stolen. Getting picked up by aircraft is conceivable, but the Berlin airfields are all subject to Soviet attack and ones further west will still have Luftwaffe ground troops with AAA even if they don't have much in the way of aircraft. Getting picked up by submarine is hard: Berlin is some way from the Baltic coast, and the Danish Straits are still heavily mined; the Western Allies have left the Baltic to the Soviets.