AIRFIELD AND PARATROOP TRAINING CAMP AT STRAZ POD RALSKEM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A006600100010-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 10, 2008
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: June 17, 1955
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
S? E-0-$.'i-1'
COUNTRY Czeahos].ao-akia
This material contemn information: afe:ting t;.e 14a
tional Defense of the United States within. the mean-
ing of the Espionage Laws, Title 18, U.S.C. Secs. 793
and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in
any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited
by law.
REPORT
SUBJECT Airfield and -Paratroop Training tamp DATE DISTR. 17 June 1955
at Straz pod-Ralskem
NO. OF PAGES 6
DATE OF INFO. REQUIREMENT NO. RD
PLACE ACQUIRED REFERENCES
This is UNEVALUATED
Information
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT' IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
1. A military airfield.._and..paratroop.training camp! are lWated We$t-northwest of the
town of Straz pod.Ralskem (Wartenberg). (N 50-42, $ 2A P40 P- on_ the -western bank of
the Jested.slq (Jeskem)_. areek._ The southwest corner of the airfield-complex is at
the crossing.of_tha-.Stre-a pod_Ralskem-Liahov and the N. Luhae-4oatr?elna roads; the
northwest . corner is. an tha N. Luhov-Postrelna._ road 3,000. a. north- of this crossing;
the southeast corner is at the crossing of the N. Luhov-Strew pod Ralskem and the
Stras pod Ralskem )ubnioe roads; the northeast corner is 2,800 m. north of this
crossing. The length of the west aide of the airfield complex is 3,000 z.; the
length of the east side is 2,800 a.; the width of the south-side is 3,000---m.; and
the width of the north side is 3,000 a. The entire area is enclosed with barbed
wire on wooden posts. There is no railroad siding.
2. The paratroop school and its equipt are in the southern part of this complex;
the actual. military airfield is in the northern part, north of the aircraft
hardstands (see point 2 on the sketch). The purpose of this airfield is the
training of paratroops. The establishment of the paratroop camp began in 1952.
At the same time work was begun' a$t .' the ground 'to the' north. of ' this ' atea
i .o, der to mks first an emergency airfield, and then later a.regular landing
field, 1I x.953 the temporary barracks were converted into permanent barracks of
concrete and construction of the airfield was begun, which is still not completed.
There is no finished take-off runway at the airfield. This does not seem noes-
sary because only slower transport planes land and take off here. 'These aircraft
start their take-offs on the northern part of the field, where the surface has
been made firm by rolling gravel into it (see sketch, point 1). There are no
taxiing runways on the airfield,
3. Stationed at the field aret
a. A paratroop regiment with the
be A transportation unit consisting of two squadrons.
a. An air service unit with the strength of a ground crew company.
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NOTE: Washington distribution indicated by "X"; Field distribution by "#".)
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4, The paratroop regimenti was set up in November 1953 from the independent regiment
which had the same field post number. The original battalion was transferred here
in 1952 from Ceska Lipa. The higher headquarters of the regiment, a paratroop
division, is still stationed at Ceska Lips. Airfield. The regiment consists of:
a staff company with 80 men 25X1
a signal company, with radio and light signal division
a radar platoon (supposedly forming)
a sapper platoon, 30 men
a supply and quartermaster section, 90 men
a medical section, 30 men
two paratroop battalions
one support battalion
5. Every year from May till September, in addition, a training battalion is set. up which
is not integrated but functions only for training recruits and personnel requiring
retraining. A course takes five months,
6. All paratroop battalions consist of three companies. Each company has a complement
of 140 men and each company is divided into three paratroop rifle platoons and a
heavy-weapons platoon. Each platoon has three squads of 11 men each which are not
only equipped with light machine guns, but have also either mortars, rifle grenades,
or bazookas as heavy weapons. Since the proper number of assault carbines of 1952
M type are not available, the squad members are armed with machine pistols, with the
exception of the assistant squad leader, who has a gun with telescopic sights.
7, The support battalion, which is presently being set up, is also composed of three
companies, One is a mine-laying company, the second a machine gun company, and
the third an antitank company. There is no information on the equipment of these
companies,
8. Practice Jumps are held twice a week, in which aircraft from this field and air-
craft belonging to a transportation unit at Ceska Lipu Airfield are used. The
practice jumps are made in very changeable, hilly, and wooded terrain nearby, and
usually are connected with battle maneuvers and practice marches of several days'
duration, especially exercises in the mounting of hedgehog defense positions and
circular defense systems. Very great emphasis is laid on the athletic training of
the men and practice is carried out daily on the assault course and on the sport field
in addition to the jumps.
9. The trainees in the training battalion receive basic training first, then training
in packing parachutes and how to fall when hitting the ground, later practice in
jumping from a jump tower, and then only in the fifth month of training the trainees
jump from an airplane.
10. The transportation unit (see paragraph 3 above) is actually stationed at Ceska Lipa
Airfield, In most cases nearly all the airplanes of the unit fly on the second
jump day of the week (which is usually Friday) by start[fig at Ceska Lipa, to which
they return usually early Tuesday, the morning of the ,firet3i jump dayo The unit,
consisting of two squadrons of nine airplanes each, is equipped with twin-motored
IL-12-A aircraft. The airplanes transport, besides the crew, two squads. Two
squads always jump at the same time. Four-motored IL-18 aircraft also come from
Ceska Lips, Airfield. These aircraft, which have a span of 33 m. and a fuselage
length of 2t, m., are supposed to be able to transport 60 men at a time. These
aircraft have a so-called upper wing. The motors, attached to the bottom side of
these wings,, are very prominent; the rear leading surface is rounded and has a semi-
elliptical form. The planes are also equipped with weapons
U. The air service unit with the strength of a ground crew company reportedly has a
complement of 180 men, divided among a signal unit, a guard unit, an ordnance unit.
and a transportation unit. 25X1
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Buildings
12. North of the paratroop camp, north of the east west captor line of the airfield
area, about 900 m. west of the east side of the airfield, is a hangars 70 x 30 m,
(see point 5 on the sketch). This hangar has a reinforced concrete frame, concrete
slab side walls, a corrugated sheet-metal roof, and sheet-steel dgprs on the north,
sliding on joints. A two-story building adjoins the hangar to the south. There
is a one-story building west of this hangar in which the airfield guard and the
officer of the day are quartered (point 4). A two-story building with a flat roof
is located about 80 m. in a northwest line from there, On the roof there is a radio
aerial. The building itself quarters the airfield commander. East of the entrance
to the hangar described (point 5) and about 80 a, to the east a hangar is under
construction (point 6). This hangar is the same size as the completed one, The
iron frame is already up. The paratroop camp (point 8) consists of 80 barracks
which average 40 x 10 m. in size. In addition in this complex there are three
two-story buildings. One(point 3) is the headquarters building. Most of these
barracks are built of prefabricated reinforced concrete blocks and have slate roofs.
A few of the barracks have brick walls, and still fewer have double wooden
walls. The barracks with brick and wooden walls are built on stone bases and have
wooden roofs. Outside of the airfield area in the northwest part of the town of
Stras pod Ralskem are eight three-story houses (point 7). These are quarters for
officers and NCOs of the airfield, and for the most part are still under construction.
In the center of the western part of the camp,.p lex is a sport field (see point 17)
with a very difficult obstacle course. In the southwest part of this field three
towers for jump training were erected (point 18). The jvAp..tower lying to the north
is estimated to be about 55-60 m. high, while each of the other jump towers is
estimated to be 15 m. high. All three towers are of iron construction and stand
on concrete bases, The northern tower has an elevator; the other two have iron
staircases., Along the center east-west line which separates tie airfield from the
paratroo camp area there are 12 large hardstands camouflaged fay planted trees
(point 2),
Motor fuel and A? i
13. Aircraft are fueled on the airfield by two tank trucks. In addition, fuel is
stored in barrels in zigzag trenches located between the hangar still under construc-
tion (point 6) and the east side of the airfield. An exact count of the barrels
stored there on top of one another was not possible, but there were an estimated
250 barrels. In similar trenches immediately on the west edge of the airfield,
approximately 400 m. north of the east-west center line (and stone road from the N.
Luhcv-ftstrelna road to the paratroop camp) which divides the airfield from the
paratroop area, are possibly 200 barrels, reportedly also containing fuel., In
the angle of the east-west center line and the west side of the field an underground
fuel storage depot is under construction (point 15). Currently there are four
reinforced concrete cisterns in a horizontal position, each cylindrical (walsenartig),
15 m. long, with a diameter of 5 m., which are shortly to be covered over with
earth. In the camp barracks area there are two separate barracks for ready
ammunition (point 16), There barracks are surrounded with barbed wire and have
a permanent guard in front.
AA Gun fttterion
14. The AA gun emplacements are of dirt. One is located in the northern third of the
west side; another is on the east side, north of the trench for the fuel barrels;
another is on the east side, an estimated 120 me northeast of the southeast corner
of the airfield (point 9). There are no guns in the positions,
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Radarp Radio, and Weather Station
15. On the roof of the paratroop area headquarters (point 3) is an aerial approximately
seven meters high in the form of an upsidle-down umbrella frame. It has no insulators;
it has single wires and rod antenna. According to the informants, an ultra-short-
wave transmitter is inside the headquarters building. Instrument flights are
supposed to be directed from here. Right next to the head uarters building is a
single-rod aerial 14 m. highs, without insulators or wires (see point ll)o On
hill 361 at the northern part of the airfield, the Heideberg, a permanent radar 25X1
screen is located the neak of the rise (point 12)o The screen can be seen only
P's-ems a Ai a+anne_
Access is prevented by military sentries. The weather
station is located the northern third of the west side of the airfields between 25X1
the western edge and the street, in a peasants requisitioned house (see point 13)0
Ele is Power and Lights
16. The current for the whole area is supplied by the electric power plant in Liberec
by long-distance overhead wire leading to Stras pod Ralskem. From here it is brought,
also by overhead wire, to the paratroop camp and through this to the airfield
itself (see point 10). Searchlights are not available. The boundaries of the
airfield are outlined with neon lights which are only seldom lit. Hill 361 is
also provided with lights.
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Military Airfield and Paratroop
Training Camp at Stras pod Ralskem
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1. Take-off direction
2. Aircraft hardstands
3. Airfield headquarters
3a. Paratroop camp headquarters
4. Airfield guard
5. Completed hangar
6. Hangar under construction
7. Officer and NCO quarters
8. Paratroop carp barracks
9. Gun emplacements
10. Overhead electric current lines
11. Aerial
12. Radar station
13. Weather station
14. Fuel storage trenches
15. Central fuel storage dump under construction
16. Anmsunition magasine
17. Sport field
18. Jump towers
19. Training and alarm area
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