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Near the time of the Cuban crises, the Russians decided they were going to shut down Berlin again, as they did in 1949. The US decided they would not. All short time US combat forces were extended for six months in Germany - we were very close to a ground war with Russia, a part of the cold war which most people have never heard about.
Bad Hersfeld is in the "Fulda Gap" area. This is the only location heavy tanks can traverse into West Germany in this entire region. It was plugged by lots of US Armor and Artillery, with Air strike forces minutes away. If Russia had tried to push thru here they would have come with massed armor, artillery and air, "The Gap" was a bottle-neck, there would have been one hell of a fight.
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On a 30 day maneuver one winter in this area I was so cold I could not warm up. And that was not near what one would expect in Russia. Our gear was about as good as was available at the time - I hope it got better.