# Is the nuclear missile launch procedure in the film Wargames accurate?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-nuclear-missile-launch-procedure-in-the-film-wargames-accurate/663471>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 14, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-nuclear-missile-launch-procedure-in-the-film-wargames-accurate/663471 "2013-07-14T14:33:46Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Ispolkom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47774/32.png) [@Ispolkom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ispolkom)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2013, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-nuclear-missile-launch-procedure-in-the-film-wargames-accurate/663471/21 "2013-07-15T21:45:29Z")

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There was also the Looking Glass plane, constantly in the air, which could order attacks throught the Airborne Launch Control System if the National Command Authority was incapacitated.

I grew up in Minot, ND, in the 1970s surrounded with missile silos. One of the guys in our D&D group was a launch officer. He said that they were supposed to launch on a proper launch code, regardless of manner of delivery. If a rat swam out of the toilet carrying a piece of paper with the code in its mouth, that was good enough. That’s what he said, anyway.

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