About Us
Welcome to the official web site of the Nationalen Volksarmee of New England (NVANE). The NVANE is a living history Display unit comprised of living history enthusiasts, re-creating the four major branches of the NVA. Members personer the Volksmarine, (Navy), LUFTSTREITKRÄFTE / LUFTVERTEIDIGUNG, the (Air Force), LANDSTREITKRÄFTE, the (Army), and the Boarder Guards, during living history time line events through out the east coast. All uniforms and equipment are authentic. Members take great pride in their efforts to recreate there personas. If you are interested in joining these men and woman please contact a Representative near you. New England Officer contact
Nationalen Volksarmee
The Warsaw Pact, which included the Soviet Union and all its satellite states in Eastern Europe, was created on May 14, 1955, just days after the FRG joined NATO. Like NATO, its Western counterpart, the Warsaw Pact guaranteed mutual military assistance to its members in the event of an attack and coordination of all member forces in a unified command. The existence of this command, which was situated in Moscow, allowed the Soviet Union to station troops on its allies' territories. Each member state was also obligated to establish its own armed forces. In the GDR, the People's Police (Volkspolizei, or Vopo) had created paramilitary units in 1952. The Soviet Union had unofficially helped form East German naval and air force units beginning in 1950.
On March 1, 1956, the National People's Army (Nationale Volksarmee--NVA) was officially created by transferring the existing paramilitary units of the People's Police to the NVA. The new army was officially under the leadership of the SED and under the direction of the newly created Ministry for National Defense. Initially, the NVA was to be staffed by volunteers only, but in 1962, when recruitment presented increasing difficulties for the SED and its support organizations, conscription was introduced. Before the construction of the Berlin Wall, conscription had been seen as impossible to enforce.
As early as the 1950s, the NVA became the most effective and best-equipped fighting force in the Warsaw Pact aside from the Soviet army. By the early 1980s, the NVA had an active strength of 167,000, of which approximately 60,000 were professional soldiers; there were approximately 3 million reservists. Most weapons were of Soviet origin.
It was founded on March 1, 1956. Its early roots were laid in 1952 in the founding of the NVA's predecessor, the Kasernierte Volkspolizei (KVP) (barracked people's police). The NVA was a professional, volunteer army until the 24th January of 1962, when (Compulsory military service) conscription was introduced.
Conscription was for at least 18 months and adult males between 18 and 26 were eligible. There was no alternative civilian service for those opposing military service with weapons, e.g. for religious reasons. However, in 1964 the Bausoldat (construction soldier) in the NVA was introduced as an alternative. Some of these Bausoldaten worked indeed in the construction of military facilities, others worked in hospitals or other social services. Bausoldaten were subject to official harassment during their service, and often after it, too. For example, university admission was often refused after service. Real conscientious objection was illegal and was punished with jailtime. Often the jailtime was followed by eviction to (A republic in north central Europe on the North Sea; established in 1949 from the zones of Germany occupied by the British and French and Americans after the German defeat; reunified with East Germany in 1990) West Germany.
In 1987 at the peak of it's power, the Nationalen Volksarmee (NVA) of the DDR numbered 175,300 troops. Appoximately 50% of this number were career soldiers, while the remaining half were short-term conscripts.
The NVA comprised four main branches:
Ground Forces - LANDSTREITKRÄFTE - 120,000 soldiers
Navy - VOLKSMARINE - 16,300 sailors
Air Force/Air Defense - LUFTSTREITKRÄFTE / LUFTVERTEIDIGUNG - 39,000 airmen
Border Guards - GRENZTRUPPEN - 50,000 border guards (separate from the NVA but under command of the Ministry of Defense)
As well, the DDR had large numbers of NVA reservists and paramilitary auxiliary forces it could draw upon in a crisis.
The NVA was merged into the Bundeswehr in 1990. Merging was not a 1:1 process. Large parts of the non-commissioned officer corps and almost all commissioned officers were not taken over, but instead released from duty. The ones who were taken over were usually demoted by one rank. Most of the barracks were closed, much equipment was sold to other armies.
VOLKSMARINE
The People's Navy (Volksmarine) of the NVA had a total strength in 1987 of approximately 16,300, of whom 50 percent were conscripts. The navy comprised three flotillas, the Coastal Border Brigade, and several supporting units; the command was in Rostock-Gehlsdorf.
The naval forces were viewed as the forward contingent of the Warsaw Pact's Combined Baltic Fleet. The commander of the Soviet Baltic Fleet was also the head of this alliance of the three Warsaw Pact fleets in the Baltic. The Soviet Navy--unlike the Soviet ground and air forces in the GSFG--had no bases with personnel of its own in East Germany.
The People's Navy, which in 1987 had surface and naval aviation forces but no submarine component, performed intelligence and patrol missions in the western Baltic, antisubmarine warfare operations, minesweeping and minelaying, and amphibious landing operations. The Coastal Border Brigade patrolled the east-west border into the Baltic to secure the sea border against "those GDR citizens who turn their backs on the republic." The Border Troops maintained their own boat companies on the ninety-three kilometers of the Elbe between East Germany and West Germany and in the waterways around West Berlin. These units, although linked through their work to the People's Navy, were subordinated to the Border Troops rather than to the NVA. The boat crews wore naval uniforms and held naval ranks, but bands on their caps and sleeves identified them as Border Troops.
In early 1987, East Germany's naval forces were structured as follows: the 1st Flotilla, headquartered in Peenemünde; the 4th Flotilla, based in Rostock-Warnemünde; the 6th Flotilla, headquartered in Dranske on Rügen Island; the Coastal Border Brigade in Rostock, and one communications regiment, stationed on Rügen Island. Also subordinated to the People's Navy Command were a naval fighter regiment in Laage; a naval helicopter squadron in Parow; a combat swimmer company in Kühlungsborn; a naval engineer battalion in Stralsund; the Naval Hydrographic Service in Rostock; the Karl Liebknecht Officer School in Stralsund; the Walter Steffens Fleet School in Stralsund; the Naval Manning Division, with offices in Rostock, Stralsund, and Wolgast; a testing facility at Wolgast; the Central Military Hospital in Stralsund; at least one coastal rocket regiment, probably in Tarnewitz; the Central Supply Depot in Waren; and coastal artillery detachments
The People's Navy had bases at Peenemünde, Warnemünde, Rostock, Stralsund, Tarnewitz, and Dranske. The People's Navy and the Coastal Border Brigade also made use of berths at Darsser Ort, Greifswald, Ueckermunde, Wisborn, Kühlungsborn, and Sassnitz. According to one source, patrol vessels from the Soviet Baltic Fleet were frequently present at Sassnitz. The construction of a large rail ferry port at Mukran on Rügen Island, linking East Germany with Klaipeda in the Soviet Union, might indicate an intention to make Sassnitz into a base as well.
The approximately 131 surface combatants and 48 auxiliary craft operated by the People's Navy in 1987 were designed and built at shipyards in East Germany or in the Soviet Union. The largest were three Soviet Koni-class frigates--Rostock, Berlin, and Halle--which were commissioned in 1978, 1979, and 1986, respectively. There were also sixteen Parchimclass corvettes; fifteen OSA-I (three of which were in reserve for training and were to be replaced) and two Tarantul-I-class fast attack craft (missile); and fifteen Shershen-class and twenty-five Libelle-class fast attack craft (torpedo). The mine force included twenty-five Kondor-II-class coastal minesweepers. The amphibious capability was structured around twelve Frosch-I- class amphibious vehicle landing ships. The Coastal Border Brigade had ten Bremse guard boats and eighteen Kondor-I-class submarine chasers. In addition to the combatants, the navy operated two salvage and rescue ships; six underway replenishment ships; a training ship, the Wilhelm Pieck; thirty-nine other auxiliaries (including intelligence-collection ships, hydrographic survey ships, and cargo ships); and a large number of service craft.
The naval aviation branch was equipped with twenty Mi-8 and Mi-14/HAZE helicopters configured for antisubmarine warfare, coastal observation, and reconnaissance, and ten jet fighter-bombers.
The Coastal Border Brigade, headquartered at Rostock, accounted for approximately 2,750 of the 16,300 members of East Germany's naval forces. The brigade was organized into eight boat groups to patrol coastal waters and twelve battalions to patrol beaches and shores. The Coastal Border Brigade operated its own school.
Amphibious forces were subordinated to the 1st Flotilla, based at Peenemünde. Although the NVA did not have a naval infantry as such in 1987, the Ernst Moritz Arndt Motorized Rifle Regiment 29, stationed at Prora on Rügen Island, and the Wilhelm Florin Motorized Rifle Regiment 28, at Rostock, were trained as amphibious landing units. Both were equipped with the BTR-60PB, an eight-wheeled amphibious armored personnel carrier; both participated in amphibious training in cooperation with landing ships of the People's Navy. If the NVA were to create a force of naval infantry, these motorized rifle regiments undoubtedly would form its nucleus. In 1987 the principal shipyard supporting the People's Navy was the Peenewerft shipyard in Wolgast. Peenewerft was apparently the primary source of amphibious ships.
The People's Navy was generally rated by Western observers as professionally competent and fully capable of securing the country's Baltic seacoast. For more ambitious operations, however, the navy would be employed as part of the Combined Baltic Fleet.
LUFTSTREITKRÄFTE / LUFTVERTEIDIGUNG
Air Force/Air Defense Force
The air force of the NVA, known as the Air Force/Air Defense Force (Luftstreitkräfte/Luftverteidigung), maintained headquarters at Strausberg. The main mission of the air force was to prevent penetration of East German airspace by hostile missiles or aircraft. To perform this mission, both aircraft and antiaircraft units were made organic to the air force. The antiaircraft assets assigned to the ground forces were to defend NVA ground formations from attack by hostile aircraft and were not part of the national air defense.
The operations of the NVA's air force were closely linked with those of the GSFG, and the air defense component was fully integrated into the Soviet and Warsaw Pact air defense system. Both interceptor aircraft and missile units were fundamental parts of the Duty System, in which Soviet, Polish, Czechoslovak, and East German air defenses were maintained in a continuous high state of alert.
In 1987, the Air Force numbered approximately 39,000 personnel, of whom 38 percent were conscripts. The latter figure, which was substantially lower than the 60 percent for the ground forces and the 50 percent for the People's Navy, reflected the higher proportion of officers and NCOs in the air force. Officer candidates were trained at the Franz Mehring Officer School in Kamenz. Much of the pilot training was conducted in Bautzen, not far from Kamenz, and in Rothenburg. Many East Germans received flight training as teenagers, through participation in the GST, and were licensed pilots when they entered military service. Essential in the training of air force officers was a good knowledge of Russian, the language of the Warsaw Pact's Duty System of air defense.
Except for a few Czechoslovak trainers, the approximately 380 aircraft, 70 armed helicopters, and other equipment of the air force were of Soviet design and manufacture. In the mid-1980s, there were two regiments of fighter aircraft, probably composed of six squadrons--three with thirty-five MiG-17s and two with twenty-four MiG-23Fs. There were some Su-22s as well. The NVA's single reconnaissance squadron had eighteen MiG-21s. The transport regiment was made up of three squadrons equipped with eighteen An-26s, fifteen Tu-134s, An-2s, An-14s, An-26Bs, and some six L-410UVPs. This regiment provided the airlift for the airborne battalions of the ground forces. The three helicopter regiments included nine squadrons: three attack squadrons with thirty Mi-24s; three assault/transport squadrons with thirty-six armed Mi-8s; and three transport squadrons with some forty-five Mi-8s.
The Air Defense Command, with 26,000 troops--almost 67 percent of the manpower total for the Air Force/Air Defense Force--was organized in two air defense districts. The 6 air regiments included 6 squadrons with 100 MiG-21Fs, MiG-21MFs, MiG-21PFs, and MiG-21Us, and 12 squadrons with 200 MiG-23s. The seven surface-to-air missile (SAM) regiments had SA-2 and SA-3 missiles at some thirty sites. The missile inventory included 205 strategic SAMs and 270 tactical SAMs. Two radar regiments were available as well.
Other assets of the Air Force/Air Defense Force included an inventory of some sixty Yak-11, L-39, Zlin 226, MiG-15UTI, MiG-21U, and other small aircraft controlled by the chief of flight training. The available liaison aircraft included Zlin Z-43s. In addition, the NVA had AA-2/ATOLL air-to-air missiles and AT-3/SAGGER guided weapons for antitank warfare.
The air force could provide limited ground attack support for the ground forces and defense of the country's airspace. Acquisition of heavily armed assault helicopters suggested an increased emphasis on developing the capability for close air support. The air transport capability was adequate for the logistic and airlift needs of the NVA. Its helicopter component provided a degree of air mobility for NVA ground forces. The air arm of the NVA was, however, basically a tactical air force that was totally reliant upon the Soviet Union for strategic or long-range operations.
LANDSTREITKRÄFTE
Official name: "NVA" can be used loosely to refer to the East German ground forces, or to all branches of the country's military. We use "NVA" in the section immediately below to mean the ground forces, or "Landstreitkräfte."
Mission: An all motorized infantry force slated with the task of defensive or offensive action to protect East Germany and the Soviet Union, or to attack Western Europe in conjunction with a Soviet offensive.
Organization: 120,000 troops, 60% draftees. 2 tank divisions, 4 motor rifle divisions, 2 surface-to-surface missile brigades, 10 artillery regiments, 1 anti-aircraft regiment, 8 air defense regiments, 1 airborne regiment, 2 anti-tank battalions, and other support units.
Equipment: Most of the NVA's equipment was of Soviet design, although some items came from Czechoslovakia or elsewhere within the Warsaw Pact: AK-47, AK-74, 122-mm multiple rocket launchers, T-72 tanks, various types of armored personnel carriers, massive artillery pieces varying from 85-mm to 240-mm, anti-tank weaponry as heavy as 100-mm, and various air defense platforms.
Uniforms:
NVA dress and parade uniforms. Except for Navy, NVA uniforms followed a similar pattern. The following description applies, with slight variations, to Army (including elite units), Air Force/Air Defense and Border Guard uniforms.
Uniforms varied by period; early tunics were similar to those worn by the Wehrmacht during World War 2. From the mid-1970s to 1990, officers and career personnel wore stone-grey gabardine tunics white-piped around collars and sleeves, also trouser seams; breeches (used for parade) were unpiped. Non-career NCO's and other enlisted men, including draftees, wore wool stone-grey tunics, with unpiped grey wool trousers. From 1956-1982, parade tunics had decorative cuff bars on the sleeves.
NVA field uniforms. These varied considerably. The two main types were:
" Leaf (or Splotch) Pattern Camouflage BDUs: Two-piece battle uniforms worn until the mid-1960s.
" Rain (or Splinter) Pattern Camouflage BDUs: Two-piece battle uniforms worn from the mid-1960s until 1990. After 1986, the BDUs used rectangular rank patches in place of shoulderboards.
Special units, with cuff titles on tunic sleeves. Cuff titles have white lettering on stone-grey base with the exception of the "Erich Weinert Ensemble" (below).
" "Wachregiment Friedrich Engels". Best known and most visible of the three Guard units, specifically charged with security and elite duties in Berlin, including the "Changing of the Guard" ceremony.
" "NVA-Wachregiment". Oldest Guard unit (1962), charged with security and elite duties outside the capital city.
" "Erich Weinert Ensemble". Elite armed forces entertainment group. Cuff titles are white and red on stone-grey base (Army), or dark blue base (Navy).
" Militärmusikschüler/Music School Student. Musicians completing the 3-year bandsmen program.
Other special NVA units:
" Fallschirmjäger/Paratroopers. Mission: to provide the NVA with airborne assault capabilities. Organization: Started in 1962, East Germany's airborne grew from the Willi Sänger battalion to an air assault regiment, totaling around 680 men. Uniforms: Standard white-piped NVA stone-grey tunics, both gabardine and wool, worn with special tapered pants, berets, and other apparel unique to airborne.
" Bausoldaten/Construction Troops. Mission: to provide labor service as required by the armed forces. The majority of soldiers in the Construction units were conscientious objectors who refused to serve in the regular armed forces. Service in the Bausoldaten unit was equivalent to a form of punishment. Uniforms: Standard white-piped NVA wool tunics, worn with Soldat/Private olive-piped shoulderboards but no other rank or insignia.
" Air Defense: blue
" Air Force: blue
" Artillery, including Rocket Troops: red
" Border Guard/Grenztruppen: green
" Civil Defense/Zivilverteidigung: violet
" Construction Troops/Bausoldaten: olive
" Engineer/Pioneer: black
" Motorized Rifles/Infantry: white
" Navy: dark blue
" Navy Aviation: light blue (on dark blue base)
" Navy Coastal Border Patrol/Grenzbrigadeküste: green (on dark blue base)
" Tanks/Panzer: pink
" Paratrooper/Fallschirmjäger: orange
" Rear Services; dark green
" Signals: yellow
" Stasi/State Security Police: reddish maroon
BORDER GUARDS: GRENZTRUPPEN
Mission: to prevent East German citizens and government employees, including the military, from escaping from the DDR. Also to serve as part of the first-line of assault in event of an attack from the West.
Organization: 50,000 troops, 50% draftees. Three command centers: Command North, Command Central, and Command South. Troops were arranged in regiments around these centers with armament of a motorized rifles regiment, complete with some artillery and helicopter support. Also had a water-borne group for Command North.
Uniforms: See above, "National People's Army." Border Guard uniforms were piped in green. Cuff title worn by all ranks: "Grenztruppen der DDR," with white letters on green base.
Special units: Border Guard Air Patrol. Mission: to assist Border Guard ground units with air support, especially fly-over surveillance. Organization: Small unit of uncertain size. Uniforms: Same as Border Guard, but with green Air Force style collar tabs.
