ABSTRACT
A change in deployment areas for Soviet nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) or sending all available Yankees to North American waters in a surge or mobilization might impact on the time-urgent counterforce potential of the Soviet Navy. A shift to routine mid-ocean deployments instead of bastions would free the general purpose forces of the Soviet Navy from what has been their avowed purpose, protection of those SSBNs under the umbrella of land-based air power. The total numbers of ballistic missile submarines, nuclear are SSBNs, appear to be a relative certainty as are the numbers of launchers on each submarine. The Soviet action is a clear case of the use of strategic nuclear force to coerce and influence political decisions and actions by North Atlantic Treaty Organization member nations. The Soviets might use up to three missiles to attack each Strategic Air Command base with the assumption that reliability was only 33.3%.
