Commander of the 51st Missile Division that deployed R-12 missiles to Cuba
Flying over central and western Cuba, General Statsenko realized: there aren't enough palm trees to hide the missiles from the superpower 90 miles to the north.
Major General of the Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, he commanded the 51st Missile Division, formed under Operation Anadyr, deploying 36 R-12 nuclear missiles to Cuba and achieving combat readiness by October 20, 1962. His after-action report candidly documented the General Staff's planning failures: inadequate reconnaissance, ignorance of local conditions, and camouflage breakdowns. He later headed the Perm Higher Military Engineering School and the 153rd Space Command-and-Measurement Center.
Career Timeline
- 1936–1939Cadet, Chkalov Anti-Aircraft Artillery School
- 1942–1945AA battalion commander, Western and Northern Fronts
- 1957–1961Cmdr. 61st AA Division, then General Staff Academy
- 1961–1962Cmdr. 43rd Missile Division (Romny)
- 1962Cmdr. 51st Missile Division, Operation Anadyr (Cuba)
- 1963–1967Deputy Cmdr., 5th Separate Missile Corps (Kirov)
- 1967–1971Head, Perm Higher Military Engineering School
- 1971–1976Head, 153rd Space Command-and-Measurement Center