WWIII Novel: War Excerpts Part II

USS. Scott 12 July, 1987 “All ahead two-thirds,” Hanily ordered. Smoke continued to linger in the southern sky off the starboard bow, even though source of the smoke had already slipped beneath the waves and was now sliding towards the bottom of the Atlantic.  “Ahead two-thirds, aye,” the OOD responded crisply. In under thirty seconds, …

The Central Front D+14 (23 July, 1987) Part V

In the northern CENTAG area, the first part of the day saw the continuation of  changes in missions developing for NATO and Warsaw Pact ground forces. It was becoming clear that the Soviet drive on Frankfurt had come to a halt for the time being at least. The 1st Guards Tank Army;s (1st GTA)  forward …

The Politics of Global War: Poland Teeters D+14 Part I

D+14 0000-0900 The meeting between the Soviet ambassador and Poland’s head of state concluded three minutes after midnight. As soon as the pompous Soviet diplomat was gone, Wojciech Jaruzelski summoned his aides and the senior members of his government. Telephone calls were made, and orders given. The Soviet ambassador had made a fatal mistake in …

The Politics of Global War: Cause and Effect D+13 (22 July, 1987) Part I

22 July, 1987 (D+13) was a consequential day in multiple theaters. Battles had been won and lost, and dispositions clarified. By the end of the day it became clear which side was winning, and which was losing in most theaters. Generally speaking however, the outcome of the war itself hung in the balance. Events on …

World War III Pop Culture: The Day After Part II

The lead up to nuclear war presented in The Day After is a textbook example of a late Cold War era escalatory scenario. It is practically an exact copy of the ones used in Title X wargames at the time, and very similar to what could be found in military publications of the ‘80s. Realism …

The Central Front D+10 (19 July, 1987) Part I

Hoyershausen, Federal Republic of Germany   0200 Hours CEST The commander of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment stood at the edge of the two-lane road nodding in satisfaction as the blackened shapes of main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles rumbled by him. The armored vehicles belonged to his regiment’s 1st Squadron and were moving southeast …

Baltic Approaches D+7 (16 July, 1987) Part I

The speech by the Finnish president early on D+7 made it clear Finland would continue to resist the Soviet incursions underway in Lapland, as well as any future military actions made against Finnish territory elsewhere. This meant a large chunk of the available Soviet military strength in the Baltic region was going to be tied …