FLIGHT TRAINING BY VDA IN SYZRAN

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A007100460005-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 22, 2008
• Sequence Number: 5
• Publication Date: November 4, 1955
• Content Type: REPORT

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CLASSIFICATION C -0 N- 1' I ?D L 11 T- I
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
COUNTRY USSR (Kuybyshev Oblast)
SUBJECT Flight Training by VDA in Syzran
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE OF
INFO.
NO. OF ENCLS.
(USTEG BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
TRIG DOCUNBNT COfTAIR6 IRFORNATIOU AVIRCIIRO TBB NATION" D80'XIISS
of TRB UNITBO STATES. miNIN INS ABASING Of TTTLB I6. n1143TION6 168
AND 794. Of TUB U. I. COOS. AS A02201 . ITS TRANSMISSION 02 lEVBL-
ATIO11 OP ITS CORTRNTS TO 00 BUCIIPT NT Al UNAOTR04123D MRSON
I6 PROUISITBD ST LAO Us RBPBODOCTION of THIS MORM is NIMSMO.
Comments:
TATS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
forwarded as received.
25X1
1. Th1 expansidi of VDA iji the title of this report is Verwaltung der Aeroklubs,.
a cover Acme for the Last German air force.
2. In this report the city name,`Kuibishev, has been ?t.Sapelled and should be
Kuybyshev.
CLASSIFICATION C-q?-N-F-I-D-$-N-T-I-A?L
N8R6
STATE NA Y
F81
t 1S`TFtIBtI i ION
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REPORT
CD NO.
DATE DISTR. 4 November 1955
NO. OF PAGES 5
 Approved For Release 2008/07/22 : CIA-RDP80-0081 OA007100460005-1
CLASSIFICAT ION Cu''r'IA)LNTIAi
COUNTRY USSR
Flight Training by VDA in Syzran
TOPIC
EVALUATsON I
DATE OF CONTENT
DATE OBTAINE
REFERENCES.
PAGES.. .~..__
REMARK:.=__
This is UNEVALUATED
Information
25X1
-I
25X1
-1
25X1
-I
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1. Upon completion of a preparatory course in Piinow and Pirna/Sonnenstein
between January and September 1952, the 400th VPL School/HVL transferred
to the USSR in September 1952. The students, accompanied by about 10
Soviet officers wearing civilian clothes, were shipped by rail to
Syzran (5311 N 4827 E) via Brest Litovsk m tioscow and Kuibishev (5312 N/
5009 h). In Moscow, the students wera shown the most interesting places
during a one-day halt. 1 The course in the USSR lasted from 1 October
1952 to about 22 October 1953. The students were quartered in a two-
story brick building of a Soviet headquarters on the southern edge
of Syzran. The kitchen and messhalls were.housed in a separate
building. The two buildings of the course were surrounded by a board
'`fence and thus separated from the buildings of the Soviet headquarters
which housed a Soviet Infantry regiment. Some of the Soviet instructors
were quartered in the buildings of the Soviet headquarters and others
apparently were quartered in the town. The sentries who guarded the
installation were furnished by the Soviet Infantry regiment.
2. The training course comprised:
a. The chiefs of the course including:
1 Soviet supervisor with the rank of lieutenant colonel,
1 Soviet instruction leader with the rank of major,
1 German instruction leader, Captain Raatz (fnu), about
36 years old, 175 cm tall, strictly following the communist
party line, now chief of the 1st Aeroclub,2
1 Soviet political officer with the rank of major,
about 15 Soviet officers in charge of theoretical training,
some of. them belonged to various branches of the Soviet Army and,
CLASSIFICATION Cot:FIDEI TIAL
DISTR1$U a ON
PLACE OBTAINED_J
ENCLOSURES (NO. & TYPE)
.__REPORT
-DATE PREPARED 27 December 1954
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 -3-
C0!?iVID.uNTIAL
during the course, wore Soviet Ur ,'orce uniforms; and, a:,out
25 Soviet officers, who served as flight instructors,
detached from unidentified units.
3.
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About 10 Soviet Officers and NCOs acting as interpreters.
A total of 280 German offioers of the VPL who were subdivided
into 4 groups of 70 each.
From 1 October until about 26 December 1952, theoretical training only,
was given daily from 0800 to 1300 and from 1530 to 1930. Private
studies were held from 2030 to 2200. Instruction included the following; subjects:
political indoctrination
aircraft ex Vines
airf ra-nes
radio
equi .ment
navigation
aerodynamics
meteorology
piloting of aircraft
parachuting
basic training
firearms practice
eports
ttussian language
Every Saturday, the students were engaged in basic training and also used
the showers. _'he courses were given in iRussian by Soviet officers, who ;were
specialists in the various subjects given. The interpreters translated the
instruction sentence by sentence. During these theoretical lessons, the
subjects which had been given in the theoretical preparatory course in
Pinnaw (near Angerinuende) and in Prina were generally repeated. very
week, 4 hours of political indoctrination by the Soviet political officer,
in addition to 6 hours of private political study and the required students.'
reports on special topics. All of' the students were convinced communists or
at least appeared as such. About 10 percent were fanatics.
F1 ight training; was conducted on Yak-16s and Yak-lie at 4 auxiliary
airfields located around Syr^an. The aircraft were maintained by Soviet
technicians and mechanics with whom the Germans had only very loose
contact. It could not be detorvined which units or schools furnished
the`aircra=t. Each student was scheduled to practice flying on Yak-18s for
60 hours and on Yak-lls also for 60 hours. The following flights were
actually made:
(1) Local flights: 4 turns of 90 degrees at altitudes bet7~een
150 and 200 meters; after the landing, taxying
back to the take-oaf point, with the instructor.
(2) Local flights: same as item (1), .-but 3 or 4 circuits in
succession, with ;o-around procedures after
short touch-downs.
CG;.1FI:i31W2IAi
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 Approved For Release 2008/07/22 : CIA-RDP80-0081 OA007100460005-1
(3)
Local fll;hts: same as items (1) and (2), without instructor.
The students were permitted to solo after 4C to
60 take-offs with the instructor, depending on.
the student's power of comprehension.
(4) iii;;h-altitude flights: in the air space over airfield r,ith
the instructor at altitudes between 3,500 and
4,000 meters, without oxy;;er supply.
(5)
r'lights in the area of about 20 k aro::nd the field: with
instructor.
(6) ..erobatic:: introduction i:y the instructor into the "figure
proUra m" of aerobatics; the student :zad to
fly the individual figures of the program in...
solo fli'ht. The proeraar? included:
divin;.;^, Ii.ielttann turn,. roll., sp.in.s and loops.
(7)
(3)
(9)
Flyii4in an element of two.
Instrument fiiaht.
fe.rachuting: each student had to mane 2 jumps including I
jump during the winter term and 1 jump during
the sw.L :er terra. For these parachute jumps, a
Li-2 transport was used.
J?ror^ October 1952 to hair ch 1953, 20 students sere re :?aced because
of .hysicaa.l unfitness. 3
The four ruxiliary airfields used for flight t4:caair:in ' were located
-50 to 40 km around '3yzra:a. They had a firm grass cover which was in
ft:.)o:? cozidition. Each of the 4 training groups alternately practiced
at one of the airfields. The students were `-,aulod to ne i?ie? s on
4 e n ,ors. r
t.,suci:s. At. the in.c ividual airfields there were only '4:: or 3
ir! nousinec the 2li' ht control station, worksho,. and. a '''lard. ,'he 1-1 maintenance p rsoruzel were apparently not quartered sat the fields. .the
.
znd viduU landins fields measured about 850 x 600 meters
At the ::. of t ,he t. ainin,: course in late 0ctcber 19~3, an examination
5.
was held 'ne.iorc a Soviet commission which consisted c.' the fli. ;ht
ins tructors and the chiefs of the course. The e,car.inE.tion included.
prac'ica1 flying; and theoretical i:.nowledge. 4
each student received a monthly pay of 600 rubles 7:s. th which he
cou' a purchase sopso ;cods in a shop housed In t1ae us.rterin ? buil.di.
f:'ooc, was issued in sufficient quantity but there. uas no 'variety.
12-tor arrivin in Syzra.%, all of the students were issued Soviet
uniforms without service color or rank insig,'-nia. The :hood among the
students changed. The 1or service hours and strict separation from
the, Population and nembers of the Soviet Army had a tad effect on ttzeir
rcrate. i'light trainin6 was done with great passion. Durin the trip to
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 . ce, AW k,# ..
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1. L . . . ~Cor;j ent, The present report confirms a pr vicus statement
}ccord:.ng to which V.i)A piolots 9219. trained near Suibishev bets er
vtobe ' 19,52. and Cctob ,r 195. .
Syzran, where the students wore trucked to the s4owers on aaturdays,
it was stret:.y forbidder: for them to talk to one ailother. The
individual training croups were always kept in close formations.
The students returned to Est Germany over the see rout a thei had
taken to the USSR. After their arrival in the S;.:C, they :here
transferred to the 3 Aeroolubs.
true t, Captain Hsatz is known to
o,- cer of the 1st Aeroclub in Cottbus on
c~ aaS,~.ne
that date,ta Raatz had i~,ieen b-4
I'lanninp ction t i Adf
Uepartaen
in
1411 A Awna
.. Abte~l'Znt L e).
3.
4?
e e, u i ia,:r nlJgbi`lcun
,. 1 cx n. yy. s
Cohenfrraa.tion on air a.ctiviuri,:orts the
assumption t t trainin;S flights in the USSR were riar.e on fa,.z-l0;.:
and Yak-.Lis a the ~riet gone Ge iianc.
airfields are
airfields his
airf i'Id.a ar"L
o `reports "oPr
e locate& it the
4810 E and 531; N/4839
on the inst.U one
aP .vested a"` vhQ fol
ra'` aaS U je4o- 'these
:Y? "oardirzates 5309 id/
stavus of, thex
:1'?*`~+~
have been .:fade the co.iandin,gg
1.December.19 3. Prior t.
' ~~ aars 9 '4 a ., 194"
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