Command and Control

Chapter Overview

• Chapter 1: AudiobookHub Recommendation

• Chapter 2: A nuclear bomb uses high explosives to ignite a catastrophic, massive atomic energy chain reaction.

• Chapter 3: Following Hiroshima and Nagasaki, control of nuclear weapons shifted to an uneasy mix of civilian and military authorities.

• Chapter 4: Throughout the Cold War, the arms race escalated, and nuclear weapons became more powerful.

• Chapter 5: As America’s stockpile expanded, the likelihood of a catastrophic accident rose in tandem.

• Chapter 6: Accidents were fairly common, and safeguards against unstable military personnel were then minimal.

• Chapter 7: Accidents persisted through the 1960s and 1970s; B-52 bombers proved particularly hazardous.

• Chapter 8: Expanded efforts to develop a reliable command-and-control system did not necessarily make matters any safer overall.

• Chapter 9: On September 18, 1980, a minor error triggered an emergency at a missile silo in Damascus, rural Arkansas.

• Chapter 10: A sequence of ill-judged decisions culminated in the Titan II missile’s explosion and the tragic death of an American Air Force officer.

• Chapter 11: Following the Damascus incident, an even deadlier threat emerged during the Reagan administration.

• Chapter 12: Additional safety measures were adopted in the 1990s, yet a very real threat still remains today.