What are your memories of the Cold War?

2015-12-17T09:55:31-05:00

Response by CW4 Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 17 at 2015 9:58 AM

2015-12-17T09:58:18-05:00

The TV Movie "The Day After".

Response by MSG Gerry Poe made Dec 17 at 2015 10:06 AM

2015-12-17T10:06:01-05:00

Response by SP5 Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 17 at 2015 10:09 AM

2015-12-17T10:09:45-05:00

Being part of the then "STRAC" Army ready to head out when and wherever needed. We did get to go to the Berlin buildup in late 1961, and watched as a Russian Army staff car monitored our convoy on its way from Bremerhaven to the temporary bome base in Dexheim. Having ones identified enemy able to log vehicles by type and personnel was unsettling, to say the least. The US didn't really benefit much from the 4 power agreement that let all parties openly snoop on everyone else. One translation of STRAC was, "Shit, The Russians Are Coming". Not much other humor in the mdmories, otherwise.

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Dec 17 at 2015 10:17 AM

2015-12-17T10:17:14-05:00

GDP recons a few time a year to ensure we were familiar with our wartime deployment positions SGT Francis Wright. I never told my infantry platoon that the reason we only had two fallback positions was that we were not expected to survive beyond that. Our mission was to slow down the Soviet juggernaut of armored divisions so that the forces deploying to Europe would be able to have more time to position themselves to stop the onslaught.
Additionally I had an ADM support mission which was very sensitive at the time.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 17 at 2015 10:32 AM

2015-12-17T10:32:04-05:00

I remember tons of drills in grade school in the 80's where we had to dive under our "desks" and brace in case of a nuclear attack. As I got older, I realized how stupidly futile those exercises were.

Response by Capt Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 17 at 2015 11:11 AM

2015-12-17T11:11:50-05:00

The Cuban Missile Crisis.

I was in Japan, and if the Russians saw fit, we were not in a very good position.

Response by PO2 Steven Erickson made Dec 17 at 2015 11:14 AM

2015-12-17T11:14:07-05:00

By far the most PREDOMINANT MEMORIES?

1. Getting to the point where NOTHING changes on your logs except the AMP-HOURS on the battery and the DATE.

2. "Maneuvering, CONN... make turns for 5 knots."

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Dec 17 at 2015 11:20 AM

2015-12-17T11:20:41-05:00

I was a kid during the last part of the Cold War, but two memories related to it are vivid:
1) when Red Dawn came out when I was 13. Man we wanted to kill Russkies after that... ;o)
2) the fall of the Berlin Wall my senior year in HS.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Dec 17 at 2015 3:41 PM

2015-12-17T15:41:54-05:00

Reagan beating the Soviet Union without a shot fired. What a president!

Response by SPC Ken Harper made Dec 18 at 2015 3:03 PM

2015-12-18T15:03:50-05:00

I was in the Navy and then in the Army, both during the Cold War. Floating around the Pacific and Indian Oceans in the Navy, we had Russian Bears (A/C) fly over and "welcome us" to their AO whenever we went past Diego Garcia. There was always a ship or two on the horizon watching our Carrier Battle Group. I remember we went up to Vancouver, Canada, for a visit and a Russian Naval Officer was in a restaurant my buddy and I went into and he asked the waiter to ask if I would trade my Resistol cowboy hat for his service cover. I declined.
When I was with the MP Co in K-town, of course we had the SMLM "smell-em" cards that described USSR vehicle tags & what to do if we saw one. Only saw 1 the whole time I was over there and since it was on a US kasern, didn't figure I'd be reporting any "news" to anybody, since there was some sort of official meeting taking place. Our plt. did a couple of ReForGer missions and on one of them we were up there at the "Fulda Gap" and got to see a section of "the wall" up close, from a raised platform. While up there looking across, I could see one guy checking us out with binoc's. I told my two buddies to wave their birds at him and I'd take a pic. They did and he got really interested, called someone via his radio who came over to him and they were gesturing toward us and taking turns with the binoc's. Another guy appeared in one of the wall "turrets" with a long-lens camera. I told one of my bud's to take a pic of me and sarge flying our birds, so we did it again and then waved bye to them. Sarge said we'd probably be charged with starting some kind of international incident "and get stationed at Leavenworth" with free room and board for the rest of our lives, IF we didn't get shot before we got on the bus.
I recently asked a retired officer who was in the know, just how long we were expected to hold out against the USSR if/when they came thru the gap. All deployable troops were expected to be on European soil within 3 weeks. So I guess there'd have been another D-Day type landing. Thankfully that never happened.

Response by Sgt James Rea made Aug 4 at 2016 4:52 PM

2016-08-04T16:52:19-04:00

Spring of 77 when the Russians pulled up to the boarder for 30 days we were on alert and nobody knew it over here, I know I asked my Dad who retired in the early 60's. Why aren't we recognized for the cold war it happened