The Central Front D+20 (29 July, 1987) Part I

General John Galvin, Supreme Allied Commander of Europe, had so far enjoyed a good war. This statement can assumably be misconstrued as trite or highly offensive by an outsider. But for many senior NATO officers who served in Europe during the mid to late 1970s, the veracity of the assessment is beyond reproach. If this …

The Central Front D+17 (26 July, 1987) Part V Charlie

Late in the evening, General John Galvin, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) received word that the first troops from 1st Cavalry Division were over the Leine. The news invigorated SACEUR’s deputies, as well as his staff. After two and a half weeks spent playing round-the-clock defense, NATO had possession of the ball. NORTHAG’s new …

The Central Front D+17 (26 July, 1987) Part IV Charlie

0705- 3rd Shock Army’s forward command post was a scene of unrelenting tumult. Enemy jamming was gradually becoming less of a problem, but the situation on the other side of the Leine remained in a state of chaos. One tank division was moving forward into the attack, seemingly blind to what was going on to …

The Central Front D+17 (26 July, 1987) Part II

Once all factors were taken into account, NATO forces in Germany appeared to be in far better shape than anyone could’ve expected. The Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR) General John Galvin reflected on this as midnight heralded the start of the eighteenth day of the Third World War. The aggregate data compiled from hundreds of …

The Central Front D+16 (25 July, 1987) Part I

NATO was faced with a pair of potentially decisive crises in the early hours of D+16. The first was a crisis of command in NORTHAG while the other was of the physical variety, having to do with the emerging situation on the battlefield. Given the urgency of the moment, these two crises were inexorably joined …

The Central Front D+11 (20 July, 1987) Part I

NATO forces had been chased across the Leine completely. Soviet tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and troops were pressed up against the eastern bank of the river. The 56th Guards Motor Rifle Division was spread at Brüggen, Alfeld, and Freden. The division’s engineering battalion had been savaged by an air attack on its assembly area the …

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

NORTHAG 0600-1200 As dawn broke on the Central Front, the Commander-in-Chief of Group Soviet Forces Germany General Boris Snetkov studied the battle map and wondered if it would be better for the Leine crossing to be made north of Brüggen where the road network was better able to support a large mechanized advance. Bundestrasse 1 …

The Central Front D+4 (13 July, 1987) Part I

In the pre-dawn hours of D+4, Group Soviet Forces Germany commander General Snetkov stood over an expansive table map of the central front region. The latest positions of Warsaw Pact units, as well as the known, or suspected positions of enemy units were displayed. Every so often an intelligence officer would come over and make …