Plateau of Chains [Paperback]

George Sotos (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 11, 2004

A routine war game at the Naval War Collegeerupts into an all out nuclear war between the Soviet Unionand the United States- even though the civilian leader of neither country gave orders to launchnuclear weapons.The Naval War College chief of staff, RearAdmiral Adelide Lord, is incensed at this completedisregard for the authority of established civilian leaders demonstrated by thewar game leaders. He is further enraged¿when Commander John A. Lucas, USN, the¿officer responsible for and initiating the world wide nuclearconflagration, convinces the large student body that the command and controlsystem is defective and his decision to launch nuclear weapons without¿ permission of the nation's civilian leaderwas correct. Shocked and horrified at the mutinous conduct of the elitestudent body, Admiral Lord berates the entire class and accuses Lucas ofinciting them to treason.Suspecting to find a history of disregard for authority,Admiral Lord orders a secret investigation of Lucas, and is astonished when,almost immediately, the investigation uncovers Lucas'culpability in an unreported wrongful death of a naval officer.¿But, because theinvestigation also places Admiral Lord in jeopardy it is dropped completely,only to be discovered 15 years later by the Naval Investigative Service (NIS)during a background investigation (BI) on Lucas, prior to his appointment to aprestigious White House job. Hungry for more dirt, the NISdigs further into Lucas' past. His tour as the first commanding officer of thesuper-secret underground Kunia Command Center,where he was astride of the "execute" message for nuclear warfare in thePacific, is carefully sifted. Also, his five year tour as head of planning anddesign of the Command and Control system for the Joint Chiefs of Staff isexamined in detail; as is his friendship with the skipper of a Soviet Destroyerthat shadowed the Sixth Fleet when Lucas¿ commanded a Destroyer attached to thatfleet.Not only does the NISconvince the reluctant Chief of

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

As the first commanding officerof the massive underground Fleet Operations Control Center at Kunia, Hawaii, and, subsequently, as the head of planningand design of the command and control systems for the Joint Chiefs of Stafffrom 1965 to 1970,¿ Captain Sotos is uniquely qualified to write a story aboutstrategic command and control systems for nuclear warfare. His extensive sea duty includescommand of¿ twoDestroyer Escorts, a Destroyer, a squadron of nine Destroyer Escort Radarships, a Landing Ship Dock and¿ a Fleet Oiler.He is a graduate of the Naval War College.and a former director of the Department of DefenseComputer Institute, which later became part of the National War College.His decorations include thePresidential Unit Citation for outstanding performance in combat on an escortvessel; the Meritorious Service Medal for superior initiative and outstandingleadership in meeting the Joint Chiefs of Staff requirements for a command andcontrol system; and Legion of Merit for outstanding service as Director of theDepartment of Defense Computer Institute.He retired from the Navy in 1972after over thirty-one years of service.He is married to the formerGeorgette Catsis of Wilmette, Illinois. They have twosons, Dr. John G. Sotos, a Cardiologist, and GeorgeA. Sotos, an Oncologist. George and Georgette live in Alexandria , Virginia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 372 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (February 11, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1414040334
• ISBN-13: 978-1414040332
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,445,735 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Plateau of Chains, May 24, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Plateau of Chains (Paperback)

Plateau of Chains is a tense drama that might actually have happened during the cold war. The story takes place at the time of the Cuban missile crisis. In an underground bunker in Hawaii a practice nuclear attack message is transmitted to the Navy fleet as the real thing. How could such a thing have happened? Who could have been responsible? Was it the commander of the cave? Did the attack get called off in time? Was it an honest mistake or an enemy plot to start World War III? These and other questions in this fast-paced book are answered in a spell binding, fast paced manner. This story could only have been told by a Navy officer who worked in that cave and could have experienced a similar scenario. That officer was the author, Capt. George Sotos, USN Retired. The big question remains: If this really happened, did the Pentagon know about? And if it did, why has this near catastrophe been kept a secret for so long?