1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,920 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi again. Welcome to this Day in History Class, 3 00:00:08,280 --> 00:00:15,480 Speaker 1: where history waits for no One. Today is September nineteen. 4 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:29,720 Speaker 1: The day was September nineteen seventy nine. Eight people escaped 5 00:00:29,800 --> 00:00:33,760 Speaker 1: communists East Germany by floating over border fences to West 6 00:00:33,800 --> 00:00:39,159 Speaker 1: Germany in a homemade hot air balloon. The German Federal Republic, 7 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:43,400 Speaker 1: better known as West Germany, was created in nineteen nine 8 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:46,920 Speaker 1: when the zones that were controlled by America, Britain, and 9 00:00:47,040 --> 00:00:52,440 Speaker 1: France merged. The Soviets then created East Germany, also known 10 00:00:52,479 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 1: as the German Democratic Republic, from their zone of occupation. 11 00:00:57,400 --> 00:01:01,880 Speaker 1: Though Berlin, the former German capital, situated within the Soviet zone, 12 00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:05,920 Speaker 1: the city was divided into West Berlin and East Berlin. 13 00:01:07,160 --> 00:01:10,360 Speaker 1: East Germany built the Berlin Wall in nineteen sixty one 14 00:01:10,680 --> 00:01:14,279 Speaker 1: to cut off the Allied occupied West Berlin from East 15 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:19,000 Speaker 1: Berlin and surrounding East Germany. Many people attempted to escape 16 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:23,480 Speaker 1: East Germany for West Germany, motivated by troublesome political events 17 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: in East Germany and better living conditions in West Germany. 18 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:30,800 Speaker 1: But East Germany punished and demeaned people who tried to 19 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:34,480 Speaker 1: flee the state. The border was hundreds of miles long 20 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:38,280 Speaker 1: and made of metal fences with barbed wire, watched by 21 00:01:38,319 --> 00:01:41,840 Speaker 1: East German soldiers and watch towers with searchlights and sirens. 22 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:46,160 Speaker 1: Fling was punishable with fines and imprisonment, and many people 23 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:48,960 Speaker 1: who tried to make it over the border were killed 24 00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:53,480 Speaker 1: by land mines and guards. Still, refugees attempted to flee 25 00:01:53,600 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 1: using a variety of tactics. Mechanic Peter Strelzek and his 26 00:01:58,400 --> 00:02:02,120 Speaker 1: friend bricklayer Gunter Bud Soul were eager to leave oppressive 27 00:02:02,160 --> 00:02:05,800 Speaker 1: East Germany, so they got the idea to escape with 28 00:02:05,880 --> 00:02:09,000 Speaker 1: their families in a hot air balloon. After watching a 29 00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:13,040 Speaker 1: television show on the history of ballooning, they studied how 30 00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:15,639 Speaker 1: to make a balloon and realized that to carry eight 31 00:02:15,680 --> 00:02:19,640 Speaker 1: passengers plus the weight of equipment and materials, they would 32 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:23,280 Speaker 1: need a balloon that could hold thand cubic feet of air. 33 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:27,040 Speaker 1: They bought rolls of material and bed sheets from shops 34 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:30,520 Speaker 1: around East Germany, and their wives stitched them together to 35 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:34,360 Speaker 1: make the balloon. The burner was made out of propane 36 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:38,320 Speaker 1: bottles and a stove pipe. The cast iron platform had 37 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:41,680 Speaker 1: posts on the corners for hand holes and rope anchors, 38 00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:45,680 Speaker 1: and the guard rail was a clothes line. The whole 39 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,600 Speaker 1: time they were building the balloon, they were still going 40 00:02:48,639 --> 00:02:53,080 Speaker 1: to work. Their first few tests of their balloon were unsuccessful, 41 00:02:53,440 --> 00:02:57,520 Speaker 1: and they experimented with different materials to improve the balloon's construction. 42 00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:01,640 Speaker 1: On the night of July third, nineteen seventy nine, the 43 00:03:01,680 --> 00:03:04,800 Speaker 1: Strelzic family went to a meadow about twenty five miles 44 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:07,440 Speaker 1: from the border and attempted to make the trip to 45 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:11,840 Speaker 1: West Germany. The vessels had backed out, afraid the plan 46 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:16,560 Speaker 1: was too risky. Unfortunately, the balloon dropped to the ground 47 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:19,280 Speaker 1: due to water vapor that added weight to the balloon, 48 00:03:19,680 --> 00:03:22,040 Speaker 1: and the family did not make it across the border. 49 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:27,440 Speaker 1: They abandoned the balloon and went back home. Fearing the 50 00:03:27,480 --> 00:03:30,400 Speaker 1: East German authorities would be on their trail soon, the 51 00:03:30,480 --> 00:03:35,880 Speaker 1: Streelsics decided to build a new, larger balloon. On September six, 52 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:39,800 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy nine, both families went to the launch site 53 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:42,480 Speaker 1: and took a twenty eight minute hot air balloon trip 54 00:03:42,520 --> 00:03:46,600 Speaker 1: across the border into West Germany. People who lived in Nila, 55 00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 1: the Bavarian town near where the hot air balloon landed, 56 00:03:49,880 --> 00:03:55,000 Speaker 1: offered the families food, money, clothes, housing and jobs. The 57 00:03:55,040 --> 00:03:59,240 Speaker 1: Streltics later moved to Switzerland, then back to Germany after 58 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:04,480 Speaker 1: German unification. In the story of the balloon escape has 59 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 1: been told in a book and movies. I'm Eve Stephcote 60 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:11,840 Speaker 1: and hopefully you know a little more about history today 61 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. If there's something that I missed 62 00:04:15,560 --> 00:04:18,479 Speaker 1: in an episode, you can share it with everybody else 63 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:23,280 Speaker 1: on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook at t d i h 64 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:28,240 Speaker 1: C Podcast. Thanks for joining me on this trip through history. 65 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:37,360 Speaker 1: See you here, same place tomorrow. For more podcasts from 66 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 1: I Heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 67 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:41,920 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.