Download The Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile
Crisis
October 15 1962October 27 1962
A Time of Despair, a Time of Worry, a
Time of Panic.
The cold war-a time when two super powers, the
Soviet Union and the USA fought each other for
the right to be called the most powerful nation in
the world. Whether it be the Space race or the
Cuban Missile Crisis these two super powers
always had a lot to fight about.
So enjoy learning all about the Cuban Missile
crisis and Malmstrom Air Force Base’s role in
our slide show titled 13 Days of Despair.
13 Days of Despair
A Slide Show on the Cuban
Missile Crisis.
The Crisis
Begins
October 15, 1962
Monday
The Crisis Begins

A U-2 reconnaissance pilot, Richard Heyser,
takes photos which reveal the presence of SS-4
Nuclear missiles in Cuba.
Meanwhile back in Montana~
Malmstrom Air Force Base had the
first and only solid fueled rocket,
however they lacked ability to launch
it.
October 16, 1962
Tuesday
October 16, 1962
President John F. Kennedy was informed
of the missiles while eating breakfast.
 President Kennedy convened EX-COMM,
his twelve most important advisors.
 What the president didn’t know was that
Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev had
given the Soviet field commanders in
Cuba permission to launch nuclear
missiles if the United States invaded.

October 17, 1962
Wednesday
October 17, 1962
 The
first of three SS-5 Intermediate
Range Ballistic Missiles (IRBM) were
detected in Cuba.
October 18, 1962
Thursday
October 18, 1962

President John F. Kennedy meets with and
advises Soviet Foreign Minister Andrie
Gromyko that the United States will not
tolerate the presence of Soviet missiles in
Cuba. Gromyko denies having weapons of
any sort in Cuba.
Friday
October 19,1962
October 19, 1962

President Kennedy
meets with secretary
of defense Robert
McNamara to discuss
military options. JFK
left later to Chicago,
he was told not to tell
anybody about the
crisis.
Meanwhile back in Montana~
 Airmen
at Malmstrom Air
Force Base started laying
wire to launch solid fuel
rockets. Construction sites
were in the middle of fields,
and even on farms.
Saturday
October 20, 1962
October 20, 1962

Robert Kennedy tells
President Kennedy to
return to Washington
D.C. to discuss the
discovery of new Soviet
Missiles. At the time
President Kennedy was
in Chicago.

After much debate the
President finally agreed
to return to Washington
D.C. He told the media
that he had a “upper
respiratory infection.”
Sunday
October 21,1962
October 21,1962

Kennedy asks the Air
Force if they could
take out all of the
Cuban missiles. “Only
the ones we know
about” replied the Air
Force. President
Kennedy decided to
navel block Cuba.

Another U-2 plane
discovered missiles
being built on the
North Shore of Cuba.
President Kennedy
told the media that he
would tell the
American Public
tomorrow.
TOP SECRET
SOME PICTUES
TAKEN BY U-2 Spy
PLANES
October 22
1962
Monday
October 22, 1962




The public was informed of
the crisis on this day.
Senate leaders were
informed of the crisis and
called for air strikes.
Kennedy reinforced his
decision for a quarantine.
Marines reinforced the base
at Guantanamo Bay.
President Kennedy’s Speech
Addressed the nation about what was going on in
Cuba
 Announced plans to implement a naval blockade
of Cuba.
 Sets military alert to DEFCON 3.
 Instructions were given to be ready to launch
missiles within minutes of the President's speech.
 In response to this speech, Castro mobilized of
Cuba’s military forces.

Meanwhile back in Montana~
 Kennedy
ordered Malmstrom
officials to be prepared to
launch the missiles at any
time.
October 23,
1962
Tuesday
October 23, 1962




A low level reconnaissance mission brought back
stunning pictures of missiles prepared for launch.
The OAS (Organization of American States) supports the
decision to quarantine Cuba.
McNamara and Kennedy review and discuss options for
confrontation.
By the end of the day, U.S. ships at the quarantine line
were prepared to destroy any ship that failed to stop at
that line.
October 24, 1962
Wednesday
Wednesday



Soviet ships approached the quarantine.
EX-COMM was worried that Khrushchev had not got
hold of the ships to tell them to turn back.
They got information later telling them Soviet ships
had stopped.
Wednesday
Secretary of State Dean Rusk quoted, “We
were eyeball to eyeball and the other guy just
blinked.”
 The crisis was not at its end.

October 25,1962
Thursday
October 25, 1962





U.S. Ambassador Adlai Stevenson confronts the Soviets at
the U.N. but they refuse to answer.
American military forces are instructed to set DEFCON 2 the
highest ever in U.S. history.
The military could, at a moment's notice, launch an attack on
Cuba or the Soviet Union.
Kennedy sends letter to Khrushchev blaming the soviets for
the start of this crisis.
EX-COMM discusses a proposal to withdraw missiles from
Turkey if the Soviets withdraw their missiles from Cuba.
October 26,1962
Friday
Friday


The U.S. Navy
searched the Soviet
ships and only found
paper products.
EX-COMM receives
letter from Khrushchev
in reply to Kennedy’s
speech.
Khrushchev's Letter
Friday


Khrushchev said he would remove their
missiles if President Kennedy said he would not
attack Cuba.
Later a U-2 flight revealed that Soviets were
camouflaging their missiles.
October 27, 1962
Saturday
Saturday


Khrushchev sends a letter
saying if the U.S. removes
its missiles from Turkey
they will remove there’s in
Cuba.
Pilot, Major Rudolf
Anderson an American U2 flier was shot down over
Cuba.
Saturday


U-2 pilot strays into Soviet airspace accidentally while
flying in Alaska. Soviet fighters nearly took the plane
down.
President Kennedy will make a statement saying he
will not invade Cuba.
Meanwhile back in Montana~
People in Great Falls and on
Malmstrom Air Force Base were
relieved to know that they didn’t
have to be involved in nuclear
warfare.
The Aftermath
November 1962-Present
The end of the Cuban Missile
Crisis did not lead to permanent
peace between the USSR and the
U.S. The countries still needed to
get a formal agreement. At the end
of the negotiations Castro tried to
stop removal of the missiles.
Even after the crisis, both sides would still
engage in conflict, continuing the Cold War
until the 80’s when the Berlin wall fell. The
United States still did not like communism,
as you would see seven years later in the
Vietnam War.
Even today, the United States is afraid of
nuclear war. This is what led to the
invasion of Iraq which we are no longer
engaged in. The fall of the great Soviet
Union did not end until the fall of the
Berlin Wall in the 80’s. Thirteen days of
despair only was a small chapter in the
large book of the story of our fight
against communism.
Late show fun facts..



For Seventeen years, the launch code
remained the same eight digit number :
00000000.
The launch code was even displayed on
the launch check list!
This would have made it very easy for a
group of airmen to perform an unauthorized
launch.