Quarantine of Cuba
24 OCTOBER-21 NOVEMBER 1962
QUARANTINE OF CUBA
On the 14th of October, 1962, a high-flying Air Force U-2 reconnaissance plane photographed what appeared to be a missile base under construction at San Cristobal, Cuba. Shortly it was learned that Soviet Il-28 “Beagle” attack bombers were being assembled in Cuba as well. President Kennedy rushed into emergency session with his closest advisors to address this obvious threat, and after five days of marathon deliberation the members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff unanimously recommended a surgical airstrike against the Cuban base. Kennedy however, opted to confront the Soviets with the more open and flexible choice–a naval blockade, making a careful choice of the less militant term “quarantine.”
On the 22nd Kennedy went on national TV to announce the situation and his plans to the American public. Task Force 135 centered around USS ESSEX (CVS-9), the heavy cruisers CANBERRA (CAG-2) and NEWPORT NEWS (CA-148), and a squadron of destroyers was deployed under VADM Alfred G. Ward on a perimeter line 500 miles off the eastern tip of Cuba. The ENTERPRISE (CVAN-65) and INDEPENDENCE (CVA-62) carrier groups stood by. The quarantine went into effect this morning. An anxious public held its breath as Soviet ships already at sea steamed toward the quarantine line, shadowed by US reconnaissance planes. But hours later, 24 of 25 Soviet ships had reportedly stopped well outside the 500-mile limit. Several freighters did approach the line in subsequent days, the tanker Bucharest was stopped by GEARING (DD-710), and Marucla was stopped by JOSEPH P. KENNEDY, JR. (DD-850) and JOHN R. PIERCE (DD-753). Both freighters were allowed to proceed after inspections revealed no contraband.
On October 26th Kennedy received an impassioned letter from Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev justifying the missiles for the defense of Cuba. The Premier cracked the door of compromise by offering to remove the weapons from Cuba if Kennedy pledged not to invade that nation, a reference to the botched Bay of Pigs invasion of April 1961. Before Kennedy had a chance to respond, a second angry communiqué arrived from the Kremlin adding another demand–the withdrawal of American missiles from Turkey. In a calculated move Kennedy decided to respond affirmatively to Khrushchev’s first letter and ignore his second.
Moscow backed down. In November the Soviet freighter Volgoles, with missiles plainly visible on her deck, was tracked back across the Atlantic. The embarrassment proved fatal to Khrushchev’s career and resulted in an abrupt change in Soviet naval strategy. Their previous emphasis on the submarine waned as Russia re-recognized the value of a strong surface force.
Watch for more “Today in Naval History” 28 OCT 23
CAPT James Bloom, Ret.
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