Table of contents:
- The erroneous message caused panic in the whole country
- Defective computer chip showed a missile attack
- The accident at the telephone exchange was considered a Soviet invasion
- The tutorial nearly led to the outbreak of World War III
- Russia decided not to pay attention to the message about a neutral missile
Video: The mistake came out: 5 misunderstandings that almost led to fatal consequences
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
During the Cold War, any misstep by the military could be perceived as a direct threat to the enemy. And for several decades the world has been on the verge of catastrophe more than once due to someone's stupidity and short-sightedness.
The erroneous message caused panic in the whole country
In the event of hurricanes and other natural disasters, the United States has a special warning system. During the Cold War, it was checked every week in case of a nuclear attack from the USSR. In 1971, during the next test, instead of the phrase "This is a test," a message was broadcast that the president would soon make a statement. The news spread with lightning speed across all channels. Panic reigned in the country for 45 minutes until they found the necessary code to cancel the first message.
Defective computer chip showed a missile attack
On June 3, 1980, at the United States Air Defense Command (NORAD), one of the instruments changed its usual parameters. If earlier it had the value "0 attacking missiles", at that moment the employee saw the number "2". After a couple of seconds, the device was already showing "220 attacking missiles." Panic arose in the leading circles. Immediately, bombers were raised into the air, and intercontinental ballistic missiles were preparing for launch. Fortunately, phantom "attack missiles" never appeared on radar. The cause of the commotion was a defective computer chip costing only 46 cents.
The accident at the telephone exchange was considered a Soviet invasion
In the midst of the Cold War in the 1950s, the United States built a network of radar stations that could recognize flying Soviet bombers. In 1961, communication with the stations was suddenly cut off. There could be only one explanation: the objects were bombed by Soviet troops. In fact, everything turned out to be much more prosaic: the secret networks were served by the same relay station as the city. When an accident happened there, communications were interrupted in all directions.
The tutorial nearly led to the outbreak of World War III
On November 9, 1979, one of the NORAD employees decided to master the training program, to which Soviet missiles were virtually launched towards America. But the officer did not take into account that his computer was connected to the air defense command center. Messages about the impending attack were immediately sent to the Pentagon. Everything was ready to press the "red" button in response, but, fortunately, the president was not around. The NORAD commander then double-checked the information and possibly prevented the outbreak of World War III.
Russia decided not to pay attention to the message about a neutral missile
In Russia, too, there were cases of oversight. In 1995, Norway launched a rocket to study the northern lights. In Russia, this was perceived as a direct threat. President Boris Yeltsin had to decide whether to press the "button" for a retaliatory strike or not. A few minutes later, a message was received that the rocket fell into the water. After a while, it turned out that Norway had warned 30 countries about the launch in 3 weeks, but the Russian Federation ignored this message. There are cases when not only human actions, but also common misprints, which came at a very high price.
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