Exercise Able Archer

Exercise Able Archer was an annual exercise by NATO military forces in Europe that practiced command and control procedures, with emphasis on transition from conventional operations to chemical, nuclear, and conventional operations during a time of war. When it was active, it was seen as the culmination of Exercise Autumn Forge.[1] The exercise is best known for Able Archer 83, which began on November 7, 1983 and is believed to have nearly started a nuclear war with the Soviet Union as the Soviets perceived the exercise as a ruse of war.[2]

The exercises themselves simulated a period of conflict escalation, culminating in a simulated DEFCON 1 coordinated nuclear attack.[3]

  1. ^ "Exercise Able Archer 83 After Action Report" (PDF). Seventh Air Division. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  2. ^ Beth Fischer, Reagan Reversal, 123, 131.
  3. ^ Benjamin B. Fischer (March 17, 2007). "A Cold War Conundrum: The 1983 Soviet War Scare". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on January 14, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2015.