He flicked on a second slide, next to the photo, and continued, “These are the Special Forces Component Commander’s phases for the operation. Phase One is when the Special Forces ODA arrive on the LZ. Rasputin will be activated on DSACEUR’s call at 0100 hours, Kaliningrad time. That will trigger Phase Two, the air battle to suppress the Russian Integrated Air Defense System. Assuming Rasputin takes down their C2 that will give the ODAs two and a half hours before Phase Three, the air assault, starts at 0330, local Kaliningrad time. Obviously, if Rasputin does not work, we will not send in a heliborne assault anywhere near the Russian air defenses. It would be a massacre.”

“Two and a half hours between Rasputin going live and the helicopters landing?” queried Howard. “Surely it needs to be a lot tighter than that?”

“Ideally yes, SACEUR,” replied Williams, “but we have to take account of the inevitable friction of war. During that time the air forces have to neutralize the SAM sites, so they don’t take out the airborne on their way in. And that’s assuming Rasputin has worked.”

“Skip’s right, SACEUR,” interjected McKinlay. “That’s the reality.”

“Got it,” replied Howard. “What happens when the airborne land?”

“The ODA will be followed by a beefed-up air-assault company. One for each of the three Iskander sites. The land component commander has had to make some compromises here: ideally he would want at least a three-to-one advantage over the defenders, which means at least a battalion task force. However, putting a battalion on the ground so close to the enemy is asking for trouble. He’s therefore decided to reduce the air-assault landing force to an extra-strong, reinforced company group, but to give them plenty of air support to keep enemy heads down during their assault on the compound. We’re also confident that the air strikes will be so precise that they will not risk setting off the Iskanders.

“The other issue at Pravdinsk is a minefield, probably anti-personnel only, which the Brit team have identified next to the perimeter wire and is covered by fire from the watchtowers. However, they’ve also identified a route through. Their job, once they’ve marked the LZ, is to guide the air-assault company right to the wire. Once they’re in, they’ll have engineers prep the site for demolition, in case it looks as if the Russians are getting their missiles back on line, or it looks as if we are going to be overrun. While they’re doing that, the ODA will be physically disabling the circuitry inside.”

“And the other sites at Yuzhny and Ozyorsk?” queried Howard.