Operacija Zeppelin

milan · Upisano: Čet Ožu 12, 2009 8:26 pm Naslov poruke: Operacija Zeppelin

Da li netko zna nesto vise, osim ovog sto sam nasao u jednom forumu i citata iz knjige o tajanstvenom KG 200, o ovom komplotu atentata na Staljina?:

Operation Zeppelin (Assassination Plot)

This article is about the plot to assassinate Stalin in 1944. For the Allied deception plan, go to Operation Zeppelin (Allies)

Operation Zeppelin was the name of an elaborate German plan to assassinate Josef Stalin in Moscow. It was conceived in July 1944 when Ernst Kaltenbrunner, who succeeded Reinhard Heydrich as head of the RSHA, asked the Luftwaffe's KG 200 unit if they could land a man within 60 miles from Moscow, far in advance of the German front lines at that time.

The plan involved a secret flight of a German transport plane to a landing in the countryside near the Soviet capital. An assassin â€" a former Russian prisoner of war who demonstrated his loyalty â€" would be provided with a motorcycle and the weapons needed to kill Stalin as he drove through the city. The assassination team members had been thoroughly trained, well-armed and provisions for escape were provided for, as well as a hideout secured for them in Moscow.

Before the mission was to begin a woman â€" also a former Russian officer â€" was added to the team. The two were married on the eve of the mission.

Operation Zeppelin began with a German reconnaisance party parachuting into the proposed landing area to check its suitability, and then sending a "go" signal that all was well. On the night of September 4-5, 1944, an Ardo Ar 232B transport plane took off from an airfield in Latvia and headed to the designated site, which was about 60 miles from Moscow, between Smolensk and the capital. While most of the flight went without incident, the plane was fired upon by Soviet antiaircraft fire.

It turned out that the advance team was captured and was forced to send the radio signal back to Germany; furthermore the radio checks had failed to detect that the team had been compromised. The antiaircraft guns had fired upon the plan without authorization from the Soviet forces who plan to set a trap of the plane, despite the fact that they were unaware of the plane's intent.

The pilot was able to regain control of the plane and proceeded to an alternate landing site, near Karmanovo, east of Smolensk. The plane was able to land but a wing hit a tree, tearing off an engine and starting a fire that would draw Soviet troops to the location.

Quickly, Major "Tavrin" and Sub-Lt. "Shilova" got onto the motorcycle carried in the plane and sped off toward Moscow, while the plane's crew set off on foot toward the German lines. The crew carried maps as well as provisions but they could not speak Russian. And, of course, they wore German uniforms.

The assassins rode through the night. When they were stopped by a sentry and challenged, they were able to produce the proper documents. However, when the sentry was about to return the documents, the major made an impetuous remark of driving all night. The sentry then noticed that the cyclists and the motorcycle were dry even though it rained a short while before. He raised the alarm, and the would-be assassins were arrested.

As for the flight crew of the transport, they were able to send a radio signal that they were attempting to escape on foot twenty-four hours after the crash. Subsequently they were never heard off again.

Heres an article on Luftwaffe's Secret KG 200 in World War II. It talks about the Operation too.

"By July 1944, the war was turning against the German Reich on all fronts. Ernst Kaltenbrunner, commander (under commander in chief of the SS, Heinrich Himmler) of all SS intelligence operations and head of the Reich Main Security Office, informed the KG 200 operations officer that he needed to provide a plane that could fly almost to Moscow, land and unload cargo and people, all unnoticed. The purpose of that mission, code-named "Operation Zeppelin," was to kill Josef Stalin. The aircraft chosen for the job was the Arado Ar-232B--a four-engine version of the Ar-232A Tatzelwurm (Winged Dragon)--known as the Tausendfüssler (Millipede) because of the 11 pairs of small idler wheels under the fuselage that were used to land on unprepared fields.

On the night of September 5, two agents, their baggage and their transport were loaded aboard, and the Ar-232B took off. The agents intended to reach Moscow, where they had a place to stay. They carried 428,000 rubles, 116 real and forged rubber stamps and a number of blank documents that were meant to gain them entry to the Kremlin so that they could get close to Stalin.

There was no word from the plane until long past its maximum projected flying time, and it was assumed lost. Then a radio message came from one of the agents: "Aircraft crashed upon landing, but all crew members uninjured. Crew has split up into two groups and will attempt to break through to the west. We are on the way to Moscow with our motorcycle, so far without hindrances." The two would-be assassins were later captured at a checkpoint when a guard became suspicious of their dry uniforms on a rainy day. Some of the German crew did manage to make it back to friendly lines, but others had to wait until the end of the war to return."