12TH PS BRIGADE IN PLANA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A005800050011-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 13, 2008
• Sequence Number: 11
• Publication Date: December 23, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2008/06/13: CIA-RDP80-00810A005800050011-4
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EVALUATION
DATE OF CONTEN
DATE OBTAINED
REFERENCES
The headquarters of the 12th PS Brie, which was commanded by
I:Iajor Enermayer (fnu), was located in Plana (N 50/P 55) prior
to 19 November 1954. Other officers of the brigade were one
Captain Stroleny (fnu) and one Pokorny (fnu), who belonhed to
the political department. A Soviet major was allegedly assigned
to the brigade headquarters. The Soviet colonel Bradavka
(phonetic spelling; fnu)was-detached to the border guard
department of the Ministry of the Interior. Stations of other
PS brigades included Decin (N 51/F 56), Karlovy Vary (N 51/P 69),
Cheb (N 51/P 37), Pobezovice (N 51/P 61), Susice (N 50,/Q. 28),
Volary (N 49/Q. 55), Ceske Budejovice (0 49/Q. 96) and Znojmo
(0 49/x; 06). Bratislava (P 49/X 99) was the station of the 11th
Brig.
included Senior Lieutenants Beneda (fnu), Kulhavy (fnu) and Prvaznik
(fnu), and Lieutenants Dvorzak (fnu), usil (fnu) and Sindelar (fnu).
In early October 1954, recruits of
the 1934 and 1935 classes were inducted and assigned to the
training battalion in Chodova Plana, which trained a total of about
90h; men for border-guard service. I Since about mid-October 1954,
the training battalion had been commanded by Senior Lieutenant
hasek (fnu), who previously commanded the PS battalion in Lesna
(Schoenwald, P: 50/P 43). Senior Lieutenant Lansky (fnu), who was
previously director of training, was also still in Chodova Plana.
The headquarters of the training battalion was located in the
castle and the troops were quartered in a large twin-hutment and
4 other hutments. Officers of the training battalion still
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?iem'oers of the NCO training course were exempt from boner.guard
service, but were fre.,?uently detached as temporary reinforcements
t units which were committed in the border area. On 4 Jul"
50 soldiers of the training course were detached to the Pavluv
Studenec (Vorder-Paulusbrunn, ii 56/P 44) area where UJ soldiers
had been arrested when they crossed the border. On thother occasion,
an undetermined number of men were detached as reinforcements to
the 3d PS Co in Oldrichov (U]]richsgruen, N 50/P 46).
After the termination of the iiCO trainixi6 course, tae trainees
were dispatched to the East verman border where they helped to
set up a wire-fence obstacle in the sector of the Decin PS
!brigade. Priority was given to the construction of this obstacle
in order to prevent Czechs fr.;m crossing the East German border.
5. Prior to 19 rovember 1;x54, the 12th PS Co was quartered is two
enlisted u.envs hutments and one officers' hutment in iieuwindisc.._~rae
(5'~70'P 33)
r'or about a year Lieutenant Josef Cejka was company commander.
ie;uty company commander was Lieutenant Brazdil (fnu), who was
presently detached to the 4th Co. The company numbered 2 officers,
1C ~COs.~ and 28 Eta and was organized into an undetermined number of
rifles squads, a machine-bun squad and a dog-handler squat:. Tiie
ordnance of the unit included 1 heavy machine pun, 3 li?ht machine
30 submachine _;uns, 29 rifles, 2 recoilless riles end an
u.ndetermi,.ed number of hand ?renades. Each soldier aae
...as. i_:e u.,it also had two riding horses and three liprues.
r'ae recto i o the company extended from boundary -stop as far
U boundary-stone 14/7. Fifty-two percent of the r. en of the company
;:ere Cocebs, 40 )ercent were ...oravians, and B percent were Slovaks.
i:e ter::: of active service was 27 months, while soldiers of the
army had to serve a teriu of 24 months. Soldiers of the army could
5o over to the PS troops. Inductior.* to tiie border--,:,uard tr o_ s
subJct to 3ood reports on the draftee concerne; by the
ne ioual Comioittee of his place of residence and the w.orkeers'
council of his e:::ployer. Re, ul. r soldiers of t._ ,e 12th Co -acs to
o i.ours patrol service andreceive 3 hours instruction.
They -ere iven 8 hours rest and 5 hours spare time. Once a ...ci.t
all r.:e:_.bers of the company had to take p.-,,rt in a record practice
.::t to infantry ranee near the billets. All soldiers had to fire
.._tr: submachine guns, rifled and liZnt m~,c_hine guns.
Political indoctrination of the borderuard troops was oralnized
as follows. companies ,nd battalions had de.uties for .olitica
a~'airs ("astupce j6ci liticke = i,VP), the brigade had a political
e.a_-tnent (Politicyke 0 elez i ri ady m POB), end ?n Prague was
t:.e olitical administrative agency of the bp4eT-g1,'d troops
(Politicka Spravs Pohrw,icni $traze = PS PS) whose head *as
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Lieutenant Colonel Pimpara (fnu). One ueneral Zeman (fnu) was
connected with Tcolitical indoctrii.ation. 2
Coi:cient. In the fall of 1954, :embers of the 1935 class
ere __nducted under a decree by the : i;O which, effective fro::, the
fa-l of 1954, lowered the ad?e of induction by another year. This
:olicy was already set down in the National ;defense Act, dated
25 ihiarch 1949. Implementing ordinances were a,parently published
by the LLO from time to time. With the induction of the 19-yearw
old$and*per iapsj ~ even a portion of the 18-yearA -oldq# the lowest a \'
practicdble age limit has been reached. It is undetermined what
measures the Czech Government will take when, starting about
the fall of 1956, only one class a year will be subject to induction.
COI~FIDENTIA16)
25X1
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