4 ms·
> Creating a MAD SLBM force is still so expensive that nobody does it. Not even the US? I was under the impression that the US had enough SLBM to implement MAD
by tivert 3y ago
> Creating a MAD SLBM force is still so expensive that nobody does it.
Not even the US? I was under the impression that the US had enough SLBM to implement MAD, so that the land and bomber-based forces were pretty much redundant.
- JumpCrisscross 3y ago> the US had enough SLBM to implement MAD 1,750 warheads, per New START [1], on a few hundred missiles. That’s enough to wreak havoc. But given missile defense and offshore basing, reality for most of our adversaries, it leaves a lot of the enemy’s fighting capacity intact. [1] https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/103rd-congress-1993-1994/reports/199307rethinkingtrident.pdf https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/103rd-congress-1993-...
- tivert 3y ago> 1,750 warheads, per New START [1], on a few hundred missiles. That’s enough to wreak havoc. But given missile defense and offshore basing, reality for most of our adversaries, it leaves a lot of the enemy’s fighting capacity intact. Even if that's the correct interpretation of the capabilities, it doesn't mean MAD can't be implemented. It just means it needs countervalue targets (cities and industry) vs only counterforce targets (military).