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 …

Politics of Armageddon: Alliance Politics

While US generals and admirals went to work planning the next phase of military operations in Central Europe, other European theaters and beyond, The leaders of the United States, Great Britain, France and the Federal Republic of Germany discussed what was to come next. Each leader had his or her own concepts and goals. In …

D+18 1640-1700 Zulu 27 July, 1987

Aboard NEACP-Primary, 1636 Zulu (1236 Local Time) “FLASH OPREP-3 PINNACLE—NUDET!” a USAF captain seated at a console in the battle staff area called out. “Coordinates: longitude 40 degrees—” “Forget the lat/long,” the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff barked. “Just give us the altitude and map location.” “Altitude 6,000 feet. Central district of Madrid, …

D+18 1621-1640 Zulu 27 July, 1987

Aboard NEACP-Primary, 1620 Zulu (1220 Local Time) The Soviet SS-19 intercontinental ballistic missiles were detected less than twenty seconds after launch by a Defense Support Program satellite. Its onboard computers analyzed the launch data and transmitted a detection alert to the earth below. Alarms went off at ground stations on three separate continents. Five seconds …

D+18 1201-1600 Zulu 27 July, 1987 Part I

Washington DC, 1205 Zulu (0805 Local Time)  The morning phone conversation between President Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was scheduled for 8 AM in the US capital. It was 1 PM in London and Thatcher had just returned from Parliament following a meeting with the Speaker of the House of Commons and other …