The Western Pacific D+11 (20 July, 1987) Part II

Sino-Soviet tensions did not materialize out of nowhere on 9 July, 1987. The World’s two dominant Communist powers had a long history of mutual distrust, and bitterness between them. China’s suspicions of Moscow’s intentions were deep-rooted, going back to the 1950s when Soviet words and promises regarding the People’s Republic of China did not measure …

The Western Pacific D+11 (20 July, 1987) Part I

On the Korean Peninsula all of the major fighting took place north of the Han River on D+11. The North Korean first echelon divisions continued to drive south, seeking to create a hole in the Combined Forces lines for the mechanized infantry and tank divisions waiting behind the lines to exploit. The North Koreans were …

World War III Pop Culture: The Day After Part III

Even though The Day After received accolades, and rave reviews this doesn’t mean the finish product was a flawless movie. There were mistakes, just as there are in almost every movie ever made. Some were noticeable and identified by many viewers rather quickly. Others were more subtle and provincial, picked up mainly by residents of …

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 …

World War III Pop Culture: The Day After Part I

On Sunday, 20 November, 1983 a distinctly unique television movie aired on ABC here in the United States. The subject of the movie was one considered to be taboo at the time, and to an extent it remains so today: Nuclear war. Specifically, the effects of a nuclear conflict on a group of average American …

Arabian Peninsula/Persian Gulf D+11 (20 July, 1987) Part II

Meetings between Soviet diplomats and senior Iraqi government officials lasted through the morning. Around the noon hour military officials from both nations joined the discussions. Saddam Hussein was gradually coming around though it was unclear if this was the result of his own realizations, or from the evolving iron fist in a velvet glove approach …

Arabian Peninsula/Persian Gulf D+11 (20 July, 1987) Part I

Author’s Note: Apologies for breaking this post up into parts. I’m out of town for a day or two and writing time is limited. I’ll wrap this up on Saturday evening. Again, I’m very sorry.   As dawn approached it was evident to all Soviet diplomats and military officers presently in Iraq that Saddam’s much …

Upcoming Topics Through 14 February, 2020

Afternoon, everybody! I hope you’re all enjoying the weekend. I thought I’d take a moment to talk about what will be coming up on the blog between now and around Valentines Day. As always, the main priority will be to advance the timeline. D+10 is wrapped up and this Wednesday D+11 starts up. I’m going …

A Second Glimpse at West Berlin D+10 (19 July, 1987) Part III

The US Army’s Berlin Brigade had its own special forces unit. The 410th Special Forces Detachment consisted of six A-Teams, with each one made up of twelve Green Berets (two officers and ten enlisted). Four of the teams were earmarked for operations outside of Berlin in the event of war. The remaining two would operate …

A Second Glimpse at West Berlin D+10 (19 July, 1987) Part II

The lessons of the 1948 Berlin Blockade had been taken to heart by the West Berlin government, and many of the city’s citizens. In the event of another blockade or war, a massive airlift of food, and other essential supplies by the United States and her allies to relieve the city could not be assured. …