 weapons coupled with the fighting skill of the American soldier stands ready on the alert all over the world to defend this country you the American people against aggression this is the big picture an official television report to the nation from the United States Army now to show you part of the big picture here is Sergeant Stewart Queen with world attention fixed primarily on the spread of communism in Asia we sometimes lose sight of the Kremlin's other targets like the unification of Germany the question of Austrian independence has been turned into a political football by the communists today's big picture focuses on the soldier in Austria the men whose task it is to prevent that partition country from being drawn into the red orbit for most Americans the sight and sound of a Tyrolian dance immediately brings to mind Alpine Vistas to those who have visited one of Europe's chief vacation centers the name Austria recalls memories of towering peaks and ice-cold mountain streams with a climate like that of New England and a geography somewhat like that of our rocky mountain states each year Austria attracts tourists by the hundreds of thousands not the least among the country's attractions or the winter sports which last from early autumn to late spring Austria's ski experts are one of the country's leading exports many today are found teaching at ski resorts in the United States Austria represents much more than a tourist paradise once the seat of the autocratic Habsburg Empire this outribed republic thrusts a spearhead of democracy deep into central Europe the Soviet satellite nations of Czechoslovakia and Hungary and communist Yugoslavia encircle its eastern border moreover the foreign invader is no stranger to Austria 20 years earlier Otto Hitler resolved that Austria would enjoy Anschluss Union with Germany when it became apparent that Nazis working from within could never win Austria for Germany the northern neighbor launched an open form of economic strangulation then in 1938 after agreeing to accept the result of an Austrian vote on the issue of union Hitler sent his Wehrmacht divisions across the Austrian border economically and politically Austria became a German province her fate at the hands of the conquerors set the pattern for nations later to fall under the Nazi yoke concentration camps and slaughter for any who offered the slightest opposition to Nazi rule not until late in the war when the country was badly crippled where the Austrians able to unite against the invaders and help drive them from Austrian soil before war's end the Allied powers promised to treat Austria as a liberated country not as a vanquished foe when Russian and American forces met on Austrian soil on the surface harmony was the order of the day but at that crucial point in history even when the Red Army was far from Moscow communist expansion was the aim of the red leaders now more than nine years after liberation thanks to Soviet obstructionism Austria still waits for her independence today Austria as a whole like Germany is partitioned among the four occupying powers into French American British and Soviet zones and Vienna like Berlin Germany and the Austrian nation is also divided among the key members of the Soviet and Western blocks each country occupying a section of the ancient capital city and in the center of the city itself lies an area controlled jointly by the four powers the international zone some 70 miles from the US controlled section of Austria rail and highway corridors pierce the iron curtain in central Austria leading to Vienna in the heart of the Soviet zone outwardly the east and west cooperate in Vienna to a degree almost unknown anywhere else in the world the elaborate but delicately balanced machinery of occupation runs without serious difficulties unlike Berlin there have been no major flare-ups here on the surface at least relations between the communist and democratic garrisons appear to be almost cordial the heart of Vienna is the ancient inner city bounded by the wide semi-circular ring Strasse and the Danube Canal each of the four powers occupies its own sector of the city but control of the inner city is rotated by the month for its size the Austrian capital has probably the world's largest police force nearly 10,000 policemen patrol the city twice the number of law enforcement officers found in an American city of comparable size strategically located at Europe's crossroads Vienna is undoubtedly the continent's chief spy center kidnapings assaults and murders once frequent have declined sharply but espionage continues around the clock the police force is not too large for its task at war's end 1 6 of Vienna lay in ruins under the eyes of men who call themselves liberators reconstruction was begun since 1948 when the European recovery program began pumping new life into the starving city Vienna has staged a miraculous comeback pick and shovel brigades clear away rubble where new buildings will rise incorporating in their structures and many cases material from the original landmarks men in the service of the Western allies look upon Austria with different eyes through the printer pass which lies in the zone of Austria occupied by our French government passes most of the traffic of northern Europe to Italy and the Adriatic Sea France and her allies England and United States know well that Austria's position as tried Europe's key lines of communication makes her an important figure in the Cold War existing between the West and the Communist world the farmers of Austria have never been able to grow enough food to feed the country's population this is true primarily because two-thirds of Austria is mountainous but more important perhaps is a scarcity of modern farm machinery the communist naturally have seized upon this condition to urge greater east-west trade with the balance of course in Russia's favor in her water power and minerals Austria has the raw materials of an industrial nation one out of every three citizens is employed in making steel or manufactured goods Austria say the communist propagandists can be a good neighbor to the US SR since the end of the war Austria has been a real good neighbor to the communist always giving something away and never asking for anything in return the Russians have dismantled just about every factory in sight and shipped it home to Russia when the Austrian government complains the communists start talking about war reparations or some dried peas they once gave the starving Austrians which they say have to be paid for the Austrians are wise to the Russian type friendship and while the Russians have been trying to bleed Austria dry on the one hand we Americans have been giving blood transfusion to the Austrian economy through the Marshall plan and the mutual security agency American experts have helped firm up Austrian agriculture industry education and her power systems so far we've bet more than a billion dollars that the Austrian people will get back on their feet in spite of the constant borrowing of their Soviet neighbors even though the German language is a common bond Austrian culture is non-germatic in most ways the blood flowing in the veins of the average Austrian is a mixture of a lot of cultural groups whose outlook on life is alike at bottom of course the communist propaganda line takes the angle that anyone who sees one of their demonstrations has got to be convinced that all of Austria wants to go communist the fact that the so-called spontaneous demonstrations are organized like a military maneuver doesn't seem to bother their sense of truth and nobody's arguing that the Austrians don't want peace but down through history the average Austrian who'd rather live the good life than make war has had to defend himself against invaders from the east another fact that makes a communist propaganda look ridiculous is the Austrian and his religion nine out of ten Austrians are devout Roman Catholics mountain people have always been tough and stubborn the same spirit that makes an Austrian climb mountains or live in the shadow of a glacier makes him hold fast to his religious beliefs against any threat or pressure just one more thing on how much the Austrians would like to be comrades with the communist the Austrians take their politics almost as seriously as they do their music and their religion newsstands carry almost as many political magazines as they are political posters lining the walls of Austrian streets you can buy magazines and papers giving the political philosophy of all the parties ranging from the far right to the straight communist ticket their widespread and deep-seated interest pays off on election days when as a rule nine out of every ten eligible voters go to the polls in the last general election the communists racked up a big fat five percent of the total vote the right wing party didn't do much better the overwhelming winners are the middle of the road parties which form a coalition government one of the most stable in Europe cultural ties binding France and Austria are strong Salzburg the birthplace of Mozart and one of the country's largest cities overflows each August for the month-long festival of music from America from France from most of the nations of the world visitors come for one of the year's greatest cultural events they are entertained with the ballet opera morality plays and concerts performed by many of the world's most celebrated artists naturally the fairs always a sellout for those who have less interest in the classical arts they are also the traditional entertainments for a festival attracts a lot of visitors every year so do the open houses held regularly by the u.s. Army these exhibitions are open to all Austrians as well as to u.s. personnel here the army's latest equipment and weapons are displayed to show the Austrian people in the free zones just what sort of defense we're ready to put up on their behalf against anti-communist aggression the acrobatics of a helicopter entertain the crowd but the sensation of the show is one of the quartermaster corps new portable ice cream making machines for some of our guests this is their first encounter with ice cream at the same time for a number of u.s. servicemen at a nearby airfield today will mark their first encounter with their wives and children in months it's the army's policy today to keep the families of officers and enlisted men together when certain requirements can be met fortunately in Austria the housing problem isn't too great for the men who have been counting the days then the hours and minutes until their families arrived today is one of the happiest of their lives for the wives and children living in a foreign country will be an interesting and exciting experience just as the arrival of our dependents is a frequent occasion in Austria so is the appearance of a VIP from the states anyone who has served in Austria who has lived in a friendly country surrounded by hostile communist border guards doesn't question why Austria is high on the list of washington's points of interest americans have been here since nineteen forty five and the austrian problem is no nearer solved today than it was then thanks to our friends to the east but we still keep trying secretary of defense charles e wilson arrives to confer with military and civil affairs officials the problem is almost impossible to solve the russians won't conclude a treaty for the independence of austria because they want to keep their army here if we pull out we're asking for another career while troops of america france and great britain pay their own occupation expenses the russians live off the land a good way to weaken austrian economy and as long as the soviet remain in occupation we stay to weld an effective fighting force periodic combined maneuvers are held under names like exercise mudlock or exercise frosty or the like our mutual experiences during world war two make our collaboration now much easier the americans are familiar with our tea and we with american chewing gum and the french now realize that though both her allies speak english it's not quite the same but more important in the areas of military strategy and weapons differences have been paired to a minimum by the joint allied maneuvers the boundary line between the communist and western zones in austria stretches across the country at its widest point our joint maneuvers are designed to offer the greatest possible defensive power along this line while at the same time covering our flanks to the north and south it is a task demanding the finest coordination and the strongest cooperation at home of course we english are great competitors it follows of course that abroad we carry our ways with us motorcycling for example here in austria it is not uncommon to find entrance from america and france competing to actually there isn't a great lot of point to the whole thing if it's good sport another sport was watching the russians enjoy wiener schnitzel and wine instead of borscht and vodka in the outdoor cafes until the commissar decided it was very bad for soviet morale today they are confined to balance everyone has his own favorite brand of recreation in austria has everything you could ask for even the lakes or spas like bodyshow are supposed to have health-giving minerals if you've got more energy than it takes just to lie around the beach you board a cable car and ride to the tops of the highest alps without any strain anyone will tell you the view is what the travel posters call income parable every year the enter allied sports meet draws a lot of attention a small-scale olympics french english americans and austrians compete for the titles bob sledding is only one of the main events solemn racing is for experts only the course is laid out in a zigzag pattern if a racer makes one bad turn around a flag if he falls or gets up too much speed and overshoots a marker it can cost him the race many of the entrance from the u.s. army were never closer to a pair of skis and in a sporting good store until they reached austria the story behind their new know-how is short but interesting for most of the men who compete in the inter-allied winter sports games taking part is more than recreation it is an integral part of their military experience in austria established soon after the end of world war two the united states army's mountain warfare school at solfeld in in the austrian alps prepares american soldiers for combat in snow or mountainous terrain during the warm weather months students at solfeld and receive instruction in the arts of mountain climbing and mountain rescue in outdoor classes they learn by first watching demonstrations then by duplicating the actions of the instructors in world war two american servicemen were called upon to fight in every conceivable type of terrain today under the army's training program its soldiers are taught not only the basic precepts of combat but the specialized skills the terrain of their station demands with the coming of the first autumn snows the curriculum at solfeld and undergoes a fast and radical change crampons and picks are replaced by a rope clamps and skis at the end of the training cycle the trainees will feel as at home on the waxed boards as in their gi boots instructors at solfeld and come both from the army's ranks and from the large reservoir of expert austrian mountaineers theirs is not an easy task making qualified skiers out of some men whose first ski equipment was issued by the army whose first snowstorm was encountered in austria other students amateur ski enthusiasts in civilian life must unlearn bad techniques developed on their own training for all students starts with the fundamentals walking climbing and turning not until he has familiarized himself completely with his equipment skis bindings poles gloves and glasses is a student ready for the first major test downhill ski the beginners course is peppered with sits marks a record of accomplishment which does not require the skier to fall in a sitting position though it helps every maneuver on skis regardless of how simple it may appear in execution as a specific place in the catalog of the ski experts qualifications the sidestep traverse is used when the slope or trail becomes too steep for straight ascent or for the herringbone side slipping is often used for slow control descending on a steep slope the lifted stem Christy takes its name from the slight lift of the inside skis tail at the moment of turning the turn is used for control rather than for high speed the snow plow sometimes called double stemming is the break in ski its application will slow down momentum or bring the skier to a stop by sliding the tails of both skis from under the skier while keeping the points fairly close together later the students will master maneuvers like the parallel Christy tempo turns the telemark and jump turns with one pole two poles or run both poles with the completion of the training course at the mountain warfare school graduating students have gained more than the qualifications of expert skier they are better able to serve the American army in Austria for they have a better understanding of the importance of their service they know that the USSR has many excellent reasons for prolonging its occupation of Austria not the least of which is that the small republic gives the red army an ideal jumping off point for an attack against Western Europe the graduates diploma testifies that he has special skills to help resist any such aggression and that he is prepared to fight well in the rugged Austrian terrain one last downhill run tops off the graduation exercises a few short weeks ago such a descent would have been a time consuming and bone bruising experience for the novice skier now the recent graduate makes the trip with the assurance of one of the world's best trained soldiers on schemes graduates of the mountain training school at Saul Felden constitute a vitally important component of the United States Army's fighting team in Austria periodic maneuvers in which attacks from the east are simulated keep the troops constantly alert and offer a preview of what may be expected should the USSR launch its red divisions against Western Europe every US military arm every infantryman in every company has a specific job which has been laid out in advance these alpine maneuvers are rehearsals where mistakes may be corrected or where techniques may be improved and perfected before the day when any weaknesses or shortcomings could prove fatal no corners are cut in these maneuvers from the instant of the first alert the operation unfolds with conditions as close to actual combat as possible preparedness is a standing invitation to aggression the communist overlords must know that the United States Army in Austria is prepared duty for men who draw assignments in Austria today is a blend of sport entertainment and rigorous training keeping and fighting trim is a deadly serious business for these men for if the Red Army rules the ranks of the United States Army in Austria form the first line of defense now this sergeant steward queen inviting you to be with us next week for another look at your army in action on the big picture the big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas produced by the signal core pictorial center presented by the US Army in cooperation with this station you can be an important part of the big picture you can proudly serve with the best equipped the best trained the best fighting team in the world today the United States Army