[spetznaz]

Wow!

Reading that post gave me the shivers when i realized that for you guys WW3 must have been hot and in progress. Playing chicken with ZSUs and radar locks is something that smacks of amazing daring to me. You guys must have been in a state of constant readiness for a Soviet push towards Western Europe.

Actually i did come across some documents that showed some in the Soviet hierachy had been planning a blitzkrieg style tank rush into Europe, with W. Germany being their first 'stop.' And that the Soviet maneuvre of always moving their MBTs on railtracks (to avoid our missiles from targeting their tanks) had started to drift in a stratagem pattern that would allow the armor to converge in a manner condusive to a sudden thrust.

On top of that i have seen reports that depicted how close a global nuclear conflagration came into becoming reality! For example how Soviet polar radar had locked on some cloud formation and thought it was an American ICBM surprise strike, and that only one guy stopped them from launching their own stuff (this guy, i forget his name for obvious reasons, actually started receiving 'thank you' cards from people in the West for averting a nuclear holocaust once his story was reported). Obviously the US also made similar 'errors' when it came to the confusion of cloud gatherings as Soviet SLBMs!

Anyway it must have been quite stressful to have served in certain sections of the military (eg the ones who actually knew what was going on or were in areas requiring constant vigilance). For you guys you must have been virtually in a state of war 24/7!

And then people over here would practice running under desks as if that would protect them from a thermonuclear detonation! I find it hilarious to tell you the truth when i see the tapes 'teaching' kids how to squat underneath their desks at school if 'they see a flash' or they hear a siren!

The stress must have been almost overwhelming, especially when you consider the foe then was the USSR not some jehadi camp in Afghanistan, and that the concept of M.A.D meant that even the 'winner' lost since there were enough ICBMS and SLBMs (and for you guys in W. Germany IRBMs) on both sides to ensure that even the 'winning' country got sufficient nukes to ensure life as they knew it ceased to exist.

Actually i find MAD to be an interesting concept since i guess it showed that the Soviets(as well as us) had the sense to not launch even preemptive strikes due to the fact of certain reprisal from the other camp. Imagine if some jehadi group like al queda got their mits on a tactical nuke! They would not hesitate to use it, even if it meant certain locales in the mid-east being turned into flat green glass by US reprisals! That is why i am somewhat glad it was the Soviets who were the 'uber-foe' instead of some Islamic nation that was trigger happy and willing to be accepted into 'Allah's bosom!'

But that is not to say the situation you guys faced was not frightening. I am pretty sure you garnered enough stories to write a book.

Anyways kudos for your great work doing your duty in a place that was under constant threat, and managing to do it and do it well.

[PsyOp]

The soviets did not believe in the MAD concept (the best explanation of this is Nixon's "The Real War", 1980). They also trained to use chemical weapons as part of their ordinary comabt doctrine. That is why we had a policy that first use of chemical weapons on their part would be treated as a nuclear attacke and retaliated to as such.

In fact, Nuclear weapons did not scare me all that much. I figured it would over with before I knew it. Chemical weapons, on the other hand, scared the heck out of us. Real nasty stuff. And except for the nerve agents, it killed you slowly and painfully.

[PsyOp]

"WW3 must have been hot and in progress."

When I arrived in Germany in July of '81 I was assigned to an attack helicopter unit in the 3d ID (Mech). The Cobras assigned to us had tail numbers going back to 1968. They were G models with the 40mm grenade launcher and 7.62 mini-gun in the chin turret.

The opinion at that time was that if the Warsaw Pact attacked, we'd last about two weeks before the ammo ran out (if that). Earliest re-supply / re-enforcement (except for the 82d) was estimated at 4 to 5 weeks because of the shortage of air and sea-lift. It didn't take a genius to do that math.

And for those that knew anything about the Soviets, being a POW was not an option. Most of us grew our hair as long as we could, and made sure we knew the way south to switzerland. I had some high-school German and mad a point of becoming as fluent as I could so I could pass as a German national if it came to E&E. There was absolutely no confidence that we could hold off an invasion. The term "Window of Vulnerability" came about at this time and there is a book by the same name that explains it.

By the time I left in the summer of 83, that had all changed. We had new aircraft, Ammo stocks to last till resupply, and the knowledge that we at least stood a fighting chance. During that time Reagan also had the Pershing theater nuclear missles installed in Germany to counter the Soviet SR & MRBM's. Those who say that Reagan had nothing to do with winning the Cold War have not got a clue. The purpose of the Red Brigades was to disrupt this re-armament and turn German public opinion against the U.S. There were also daily rent-a-mob demonstrations against the installation of the Pershings. It almost worked. At one point Reagan quitely threatened to "bring the boys" home. We were actually ordered to start inventorying our equipment in preparation to come home. A week or two later the German Parliament signed on.

In 1980-85 the Soviets had reached their peak in terms of military technology applications. Their military had reached a use it or lose it proposition in terms of advantage. They had done all they could the technology they had stolen and their own industry could not take them further on its own. Meanwhile we were still armed with 50's and 60's military technology that was ten to fifteen years behind what they were fielding.

The Abrams M1, the Improved Cobra, the A-10 and other weapons systems that Reagan fast tracked to close the gap made a huge difference. That and the fact that Reagan proved willing to look them in the eye and not blink. In 1980 they had a clear military superiority. By 1983 we had parity. By 85 we were clearly superior. They could not keep up technologically (the Soviets took Stars Wars very seriously while scoffing at it in public and getting our libs to ridicule it). The Gulf War which pitted our stuff against theirs showed that.

Imagine if we had tried to fight the Gulf War without A-10's, M1 Abrams, Bradleys, Apaches, MLRS, Patriot Missles, etc., and I think you will see my point. And, Warsaw pact soldiers were far better trained in the use of their equipment than the Iraqi's were.