The Northern Flank D+25 (3 August, 1987)

On land and air, the final hours of the Third World War on NATO’s Northern Flank was marked by grim vigilance as both sides readied their forces and troops for the seemingly imminent prospect of further escalation. AFNORTH’s plan for the use of nuclear weapons on the northern flank was dependent primarily upon air delivered …

Galvin and Snetkov Come Together D+25 (3 August, 1987) Part II

Salzglitter, FRG 0703 Zulu (0903 Local) The Soviet Mi-17 flared and landed. The pilot powered down the engines. Once they ceased turning, Marshal Snetkov disembarked from the helicopter with three aides in tow. They moved while under the watchful eyes of an Apache helicopter. SACEUR and own two aides walked out from the trees and …

Galvin and Snetkov Come Together D+25 (3 August, 1987) Part I

Salzglitter, FRG 0655 Zulu (0855 Local) *Author’s Note: This post will require two parts so I thought I’d post Part I early. Second part will be up tomorrow night or sometime on Friday. * General Jack Galvin, US Army stood just inside of a tree line bordering a large tract of farmland that had been …

A Look Ahead Through Mid-September

I hope everyone on this side of the Atlantic had an enjoyable Labor Day weekend. And to our friends elsewhere, I hope your weekend and Monday were adequate. 😊 The summer is over and it is back to the grind for everyone, work or school in most cases. I thought it would be useful to …

Uncertain Times Ahead D+24 (2 August, 1987) 2200-2359 Zulu

2205 Zulu- In Moscow consolidation efforts continued in the shadows of major emergency services and civil defense operations in the vicinity of what remained of the Kremlin and Lubyanka. Even the consolidation efforts were limited and dependent upon radiological readings. At the present time the areas giving off the highest readings were predictably those around …

On The Edge Of The Precipice D+24 (2 August, 1987) 1100-1530 Zulu

1100 Zulu- In Western Poland Marshal Snetkov learns of multiple Soviet divisions in West Germany surrendering to NATO forces. Unfortunately for CINC-West, communication disruptions make it almost impossible to verify the authenticity of the reports. 1115 Zulu- Similar claims of Soviet surrenders are making their way to SACEUR in Belgium. Only his reports come from …

Dealer’s Choice D+24 (2 August, 1987) 0330-0400 Zulu

0335 Zulu- The 30 kiloton warhead from the Soviet SS-21 exploded 2000 meters over a nature preserve 5 kilometers west of the municipality of Schwienau. The impact point was slightly to the north of the rear area of the Dutch 5th Division. The blast caused horrifically heavy casualties as well as losses of equipment and …

Midnight Fog D+24 (2 August, 1987) 0015-0030 Zulu

The United States and Soviet Union both maintained satellites in orbit that were tasked with monitoring their enemy’s homeland for immediate indications of a missile launch. By unspoken agreement these birds had not been targeted with anti-satellite weaponry by either side. The loss of such a critically sensitive platform to hostile action by the other …

D+23 (1 August, 1987) 2300-2359 Zulu

Note #1-All events in this entry take place in Central Europe in the CEST Central European Summer Time) time zone. Zulu+2. Zulu time is displayed with local time in parenthesis. Since it is after midnight, the date in the CEST time zone is 2 August, 1987, but still 1 August for Zulu time. 2304 (0104 …

D+23 (1 August, 1987) 1530-1600 Zulu

Mons, Belgium 1530 Zulu (1730 Local) Despite the trans-Atlantic distance between SACEUR’s wartime headquarters complex in the forest outside of Mons and Washington DC, President Reagan’s voice came through with a crispness and clarity that it seemed as if the leader of the free world was in a room next door. Communications, namely secure communications …