Cuban Missile Crisis
It is certainly no exaggeration to say thatthe in October, 1962 wasthe most dangerous incident occurring during the decades-long ColdWar between the Free World and the Union ofSoviet Socialist Republics (USSR). In this articleI tell my personal story of that period as a Crew Commander in the Strategic Air Command KC-135 jetaerial refueling tanker force at Westover Air ForceBase, Massachusetts.
During the Cold War, the Strategic Air Command (SAC) B-52 bomber and KC-135 tanker forces were constantly on alert at multiple bases, 24 hours of every day. Known as the SAC Alert Force, every oneof those airplanesand crews had a specific, pre-plannedmission involving a retaliatory attack against specific targets in the USSR or a Communistsatellite country.
On Alert
Being on alert meant that the bombersand tankers were continuously guarded and parked in special areas near the runways. The flight crews resided in special buildings near the airplanes on the flightline, maintaining the capability to quickly respond by running to the airplanes,starting the engines, and taking off.The reasonfor haste was the threat of Russian missiles being fired fromSoviet submarines off the US coast with the capability of attacking and crippling the USstrategic bomber and tanker forces in just a few minutes.
Practice alerts were constantly conducted, to ensure that the crews could always get to their airplanes and take off in minimal time. One can imagine the tremendous time, effort and expense for many yearsof maintaining the huge SAC bomber and Tanker Alert Force as described above.The reason was very simple: a firm belief by USleaders in the willingnessand ability of the USSR to attack our strategic forces. To detersuch an attack on our strategic forces by the USSR, maintenance of a credible and invulnerable capability torespond to any attack from the USSR was essential.
An Act of War
When the missile launch facilitiesunder construction in Cuba were discovered by U-2aerial photography, the US viewed it as anaggressive activity, virtually an act of war. Intermediate rangemissileslaunched from only 90 miles away from the US would be able tohit American cities and bases in a matter of minutesan intolerable danger to the US homeland.
B-52 Bombers Aloft and Armed
It was then that the entire SAC force many hundreds of bombersand tankers — was put on increased alert. A continuous parade of flying B-52bombers armed with nuclear weapons was kept aloft24 hours each day. Their various routes took them across the AtlanticOcean and into the approaches of the USSR where they could be seen onRussian radar.
Flights Lasting Nearly 24 Hours
Every B-52 flew missions that lasted nearly a full 24 hours, involving multiple refuelings from tankers based both in the US and in Europe. When the bomber and tanker crews were not airborne on missions, they were living aboard the airplanes on the ground, monitoring the radios, ready to launch at a moments notice.
During the most intense days of the crisis, my tanker unit sent out twenty-two (22) sortieseach day having a duration of three hours and fifteen minutes,each sortie offloading 113,000 pounds to a single B-52 in about twentyminutes ofcontact. The effort to prepare that many airplanesevery day and transfer that much fuel, involved Herculean efforts andgreat expense.
Like a Scary Movie
During that period, the atmosphere on the base was like an implausible,frightening movie. All crewmembers wore firearms believing that they were very close toactual hostilities. We were worried about our families, who werealone in the housing area, out of contact. Many dependents movedto the North, out of the state, certain thatif World War III started, our base would be one of the first hit.
One of the strange occurrences during the crisis was thebroadcasting of Communist propaganda messages on the International TimeClock Station, WWV. That station broadcasts a simple time signalonHigh Frequency (HF), continuously giving precise time reports for use incelestial navigation. All crewmembers are accustomed to getting time hackson WWV and it was a genuine shock to hear a loud voicebreak into thetransmission with threats and accusations about how President Kennedy isgoing to cause World War III.in English, with a strange accent.
A U-2 Shot Down Over Cuba
Saturday, 27 October 62, a U-2 flown by Major Rudy Anderson was shot down over Cuba. On the sameday, also not known to the public at the time, anotherU-2 flying nearAlaska had severe navigational problems that caused an overflight ofthe eastern Soviet Union. Although thought by the Soviets to be deliberate at the time, it was laterlearned that the inadvertent overflight was causedby a mistake thepilot had made in performing grid navigation, a method necessary in theArctic regions.
President Kennedy and Soviet PremierKrushchev
During the crisis, behind the scenes and unknown to the public, diplomaticcontacts were underway and President Kennedy and Soviet PremierKrushchev exchanged two formal letters. The crisis was finallyresolved byKrushchevs making a commitment to remove the missiles from Cuba.
After the crisis,the SAC Alert Force returned to its pre-crisisposture, continuing inthat posture for several more years. Today, the round-the-clock, 24/7 SACAlert Force of bombers and tankers no longer exists.
Col. Woodhulls story and many more veterans stories can viewed on our Living Histories page.
Telling their stories is one way we honor veterans at the museum. Currently closed for the creation of new exhibits and annual winter inventory, the museum will re-open for 2024 on March 1. Please come back if you have visited before to see the exciting new exhibits. Open hours will be 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM Tuesday-Friday, beginning March 1.
Article written by Richard G. Duke Woodhull, Jr., Colonel, USAF-Ret.
Top photo: Far left, Captain Woodhull with his KC-135 tanker crew in 1962 (KC-135 in the background)
Left photo: Woodhull at a U-2 Pilots’ Reunion, October 2022
Richard G. Duke Woodhull, Jr.
Colonel, USAF-Ret.
Richard G.DukeWoodhull, Jr.(Colonel USAF, Retired) is a Command Pilot with 6500 hours of military flying.During his 30-year USAF career (1955-1985), he held multiple command, staffand diplomatic positions.
His Cold War and Vietnam War operational flying qualifications include the U-2 high altitude reconnaissance aircraft and KC-135 tankers, among others. He and his wife, Ann, have lived in Transylvania County since 1997. He volunteers at the 91做厙.
