Hinterland Fence

The Hinterland Fence, also called the Signal Fence,  did not have land or fence mounted mines,  but there were a variety of measures to alert Border Troops to any attempted crossing.  The fence was wired with a variety of motion detecting sensors and  trip wires.  Some would signal  silent alarms at the Border Troop command towers, others would trigger flashing warning lights and loud horns at the point where motion was detected. 

Warning lights mounted high on poles above the Hinterland Fence.

Erwin Ritter took this photo after the barrier fence had opened.  Seen here is the Hinterland Fence from the East German side.  An electric wire system runs adjacent to the fence to keep livestock from triggering the sensors.   The red arrow indicates a stake carrying a trip wire run to a  flare system.  If the wire was tripped, a series of flares was automatically launched.

Flood lamps tied to the sensor system.

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