Fail Safe

Pangur

Donor
Hi
I amy have posted this in the wrong spot however I have what I hope is a simple question. SAC had the concept of a fail safe position for aircraft which was (or so fiction had it) over North Pole or near as. I can see how that would work if the target was the USSR however where would the fail safe position have been if the target was China?
 
Well just looking at a map I would say somewhere over the North Pacific or Philippine Sea.

The North Pacific east of Japan, North of the Mariana, South West of the Aleutian islands is more remote and less likely to trigger a more serious if you are trying to keep things stable but send a warning that the US is ready.

The Philippine Sea is closer to the targets so there is less delay after the bombers are released but it is a more aggressive posture and is likely to produce more tension.

Also don't forget that the US has bases in Hawaii, Alaska, Japan, South Korea, Okinawa, Guam, Taiwan, The Philippines, and Diego Garcia all within airstrike distance of China depending on the year and tension level. Unless the strikes are coming directly from the Continental US it is unlikely they will all hold in the same spot. Again depending on the year heavy bombers (B47, B52, B1, B2) staged out of Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, and Diego Garcia. While the lighter bombers (B57, B58, FB111, F117) would likely stage to bases closer and not loiter very long, but launch and attack. Likewise with fighters - although there would be an escort in the fail-safe area to protect against preemptive strikes by the target country or countries.

Tom.
 
There were numerous fail-safe points around the globe, depending on the mission of the specific aircraft involved.

Also, if you want an interesting read about SAC, you might pick up the book 15 Minutes by L. Douglas Keeney. I found a lot of stuff I really hadn't known about prior to reading it.
 

stalkere

Banned
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Chrome_Dome

I believe these are what you're thinking about - there was also a there was also a similar B-47 operation working out of Spain for a time, and, IIRC, for a few months, out of Turkey.

Possibly another with B-58s working out of Italy - pulled either for diplomatic complaints or maintenance/logistical issues, depending on who you talk to. Oddly, I can no longer find the documentation on that one, although the Chief that told me about it had pictures from that operation.
 
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