June 26, 1948: The Berlin Airlift Begins

June 26, 1948: The Berlin Airlift begins, one of the greatest humanitarian efforts in history.

Two days earlier, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin blocked the railway, road and canal access to the sectors of post-World War II Berlin under Western control: American, British and French. He offered to drop the blockade if the Western Allies withdrew the newly-introduced Deutsche Mark from West Berlin. This was the 1st true confrontation of the Cold War.

President Harry S Truman ordered the new U.S. Air Force to deliver food, fuel and other supplies to the 2.5 million people then living in West Berlin, with another 800,000 living in Soviet-controlled East Berlin.

The Soviets initially believed that the Airlift wouldn't work. But it did: Under the command of General Lucius D. Clay, an average of 3,475 tons of supplies was delivered every day. At the Airlift's peak, over 12,000 tons were delivered some days, by flights arriving every 30 seconds. Most of the flights were by the USAF, but about 23 percent of the deliveries were by Britain's Royal Air Force and British Commonwealth forces, including Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

Not all flights landed safely: There were 17 American and 8 British planes that crashed. Mostly as a result of non-flying accidents, 40 British and 31 Americans were killed during the airlift.

Truman's response to the crisis blunted Republican criticisms of his handling of the Cold War, helping the Democrat win a full term in office the following November. With the Airlift working so well for so long, the Soviets became increasingly embarrassed. On May 12, 1949, the blockade was lifted. The U.S. kept the Airlift going until September 30, anyway, just in case the blockade was restored.

In 1961, the Soviet-controlled East German government built the Berlin Wall, surrounding West Berlin. But they did not stop flights into the city from West Germany, because they didn't want a World War III. In 1989, the Wall was torn down.

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June 26, 1948 was a Saturday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers, 8-5 at Briggs Stadium (later Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. Despite being backed by a home run from Johnny Lindell, Allie Reynolds did not get out of the 6th inning. Joe Page pitched the rest of the way, and was backed by a home run from Yogi Berra. Joe DiMaggio went 0-for-5, but had RBIs on a groundout and a sacrifice fly.

* The New York Giants lost to the Cincinnati Reds, 4-0 at the Polo Grounds. Ten years earlier to the month, across town at Ebbets Field, Johnny Vander Meer pitched his 2nd straight no-hitter against the Dodgers. This time, he allowed 7 hits, but still shut out the Giants. Speaking of the Dodgers...

* The Brooklyn Dodgers lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-3 at Ebbets Field. Stan Musial went 4-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBIs. Jackie Robinson went 1-for-3 with a walk, and Gil Hodges hit a home run.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Boston Braves, 7-1 at Braves Field in Boston.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Washington Senators, 5-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Bob Muncrief pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Chicago White Sox, 4-2 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* And the Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Browns were rained out at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader the next day. The Red Sox swept, 2-0 and 6-3. Joe Dobson pitched a 2-hit shutout in the opener. Ted Williams went 3-for-6 with a home run, 2 walks and 3 RBIs in the 2 games.