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Nordhausen—City of Missiles and Death
We did not notice that another Soviet officer had appeared at our table. He
was clearly not “civilian,” because his chest was covered with decorations and
medals. He put his arm around my shoulder and quietly said, “I’m from the
Smersh division. In the morning, you and the lieutenant colonel should stop in
at headquarters.”
I had to wake up Isayev a little early the next morning. We managed to
conduct some blitz-strategy and work out a plan of action: “Do not under any
circumstances make excuses—demand and attack!”This was our frame of mind
when we arrived at headquarters. But they weren’t even thinking about dealing
with us for our “improper” behavior the previous night. The deputy division
commander’s political commissar, the executive officer, and the Smersh officer
we had spoken with the night before very kindly explained,“The headquarters
of the Eighth Guards Army is located in Weimar. It is under General V. I.
Chuykov, who for the time being has been assigned to head the Soviet military
administration in Thuringia.You are obliged to coordinate your future actions
on the use of German specialists, and especially contacts with Americans, with
Soviet Military Administration in Germany (SVAG) representatives. Smersh has
reported through its channels that the American intelligence services are
conducting broad-ranging operations to seize German specialists. According to
reliable information, some of your drinking companions last night were not
combat officers, but men who have been assigned to “wrap up” the seizure of
German specialists, look for remaining missile paraphernalia, and monitor the
actions of Russians hunting for German secrets. Subsequently, we found out that
the Americans’ operation to seize German missile secrets was being conducted
by a group under the codename ‘Paperclip’.”
We laid out our plans:“A group headed by Major Pallo is leaving today for the
town of Saalfeld. According to German accounts from Mittelwerk, there is a V-2
engine firing test station near the village of Lehesten. Engines for assembly came
from there after the firing tests.”
We requested assistance with transport and asked that instructions be given to
the commandant of Saalfeld to provide us with living quarters in the town of
Bleicherode, where we planned to assemble a group of German specialists. We
requested that they provide workrooms for the specialists, establish storage areas for
valuable equipment, set up guards and make arrangements for food and communications.Then
we intended to call for assistance from Moscow. But for the time
being, it was advisable not to allow anyone to enter Mittelwerk so that what the
Americans had left behind would not be dragged off every which way.
“And one more thing,” I added. “A certain Shmargun, a former prisoner, is
helping us.”
“That’s our concern,” the Smersh officer interrupted me. “You can trust him.
According to our information, the Americans didn’t have time to remove the
equipment hidden by the SS in the potassium mines.That’s somewhere here in the
surrounding area.A German told us that about fifteen kilometers from here, almost
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