thefrecklepuny
ACCESS: Confidential
- Joined
- 19 January 2008
- Messages
- 118
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- 81
Yep, the man who is credited for averting nuclear war in 1983 has passed away.
As most of us know, Soviet computer systems reported half a dozen US Minuteman warheads heading for the USSR. For a good few minutes, Petrov was in placed a perilous position, report this as a US pre-emptive strike or not. Thankfully he did the latter and used his better judgement as he rightly surmised the Americans would not attack in such low numbers. The false alarm was apparently set off when satellites mistook the sun’s reflection off the tops of clouds for a US missile launch.
Little wonder things were jittery due to a Korean Airlines 747 being shot down over Soviet territory less than a month earlier and 'Able Archer '83' being conducted just a month later.
Petrov apparantly passed away on 19 May 2017 but his death was not reported at the time. He was 77.
Apologies if news of this posted already.
http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/indepth/stanislav-petrov-soviet-officer-who-helped-avert-nuclear-war-is-dead-at-77/ar-AAscCDx?li=AAmiR2Z&ocid=spartanntp
As most of us know, Soviet computer systems reported half a dozen US Minuteman warheads heading for the USSR. For a good few minutes, Petrov was in placed a perilous position, report this as a US pre-emptive strike or not. Thankfully he did the latter and used his better judgement as he rightly surmised the Americans would not attack in such low numbers. The false alarm was apparently set off when satellites mistook the sun’s reflection off the tops of clouds for a US missile launch.
Little wonder things were jittery due to a Korean Airlines 747 being shot down over Soviet territory less than a month earlier and 'Able Archer '83' being conducted just a month later.
Petrov apparantly passed away on 19 May 2017 but his death was not reported at the time. He was 77.
Apologies if news of this posted already.
http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/indepth/stanislav-petrov-soviet-officer-who-helped-avert-nuclear-war-is-dead-at-77/ar-AAscCDx?li=AAmiR2Z&ocid=spartanntp
