Death Knell Of The Pact D+24 (2 August, 1987) Part I

Wünsdorf was chosen as a target because of its military relevance. The East German town played host to the peacetime headquarters of Group Soviet Forces Germany and was positioned high on NATO’s target list. Many East German military officers and government officials were aware that Wünsdorf would be targeted in the event of a limited …

The Central Front: Command And Control On The Nuclear Battlefield D+24 (2 August, 1987) Part II

NATO’s retaliation for the nuclear attack against I NL Corps came in the form of two nuclear warheads targeted at two separate targets and delivered by a pair of US Army Pershing II medium-range ballistic missiles. The first and more valuable target was the Group Soviet Forces Germany’s wartime forward command bunker outside Stendal. This …

West Berlin D+25 (3 August, 1987)

On the morning of 3 August, 1987, as dawn broke across the eastern sky, few residents of West Berlin were aware that a temporary ceasefire was now in place across Europe. NATO and Warsaw Pact military forces were no longer engaged in combat with one another. Or that US and Soviet governments had agreed to …

Perception and Misperception D+24 (2 August, 1987) 0100-0200 Zulu

Moscow, USSR 0100 Zulu (0500 Local) The Defense Council was huddled together in the secure conference room located on the wing adjacent to the general secretary’s living quarters. It was now beyond first light in Moscow and the Politburo was set to meet at 6:30. In the next ninety minutes some critical decisions had to …

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 …

The Opening Moments D+24 (2 August, 1987) 0000-0015 Zulu

D+24 (2 August, 1987) 0000-0010 Zulu The gravity bomb contained a 30-kiloton warhead that was set to airburst at 800 meters. This aspect of the plan worked perfectly with the warhead exploding at the prescribed altitude. The Fencer aircrew’s delivery of the weapon, on the other hand, was off. The pre-selected ground zero point had …

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 …

The Central Front D+22 (31 July 1987) Part III (Alpha)

A military aircraft ostensibly designated and marked as a medical evacuation flight transported General Snetkov back to the Western Theater of Operations. The plane landed at a military airfield southeast of Berlin. From there he was transported amid heavy security to the Group Soviet Forces Germany peacetime headquarters complex at Wünsdorf. The buildings and surrounding …

The Central Front D+18 1830-2359 Zulu 27 July, 1987 Part I

The new commander-in-chief of the Western TVD, General Boris Snetkov, received official word of the nuclear exchange five minutes before the destruction of both Novaya Zemlya and Gorky. This was essentially the extent of the news from Moscow. The absence of information left Snetkov’s head filled with a hopelessly long list of questions. Foremost was …

D+18 0801-1200 Zulu, 27 July, 1987 Part II

Bredebro, Denmark 0955 Zulu (1145 Local Time) The request for a meeting between the commander of Polish forces and his NATO counterpart at 1000 arrived at the Jutland Division’s forward headquarters a few minutes before 0800. The request was granted, arrangements were made, and the Polish general walked into the operations center of the Jutland …