Many Soviet ships associated with the later Cold War were unavailable in May 1980, leaving Sverdlov-class cruisers to carry important command duties. Of the two Kiev-class aviation cruisers, at least one would probably remain in the bastion while another could support operations farther south. Their location matters: a ship in the Pacific could not simply be counted into the Norwegian campaign. Soviet data-sharing limits favour several smaller task groups, with redundancy between groups and support from submarines and land-based aircraft. Those forces would cover amphibious operations against Svalbard and Norway. Svalbard lies within the depicted bastion area, making a NATO response particularly difficult.
Chapter · 1:34:34-1:36:37
Smaller Soviet task groups push toward Norway
The Soviet Navy's available command ships, Kiev-class aviation cruisers, and data-sharing limits favour several smaller groups backed by land-based aircraft and submarines.