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1) The paratrooper corps is the legacy of the WW2. This branch of arms (or 'kind' as you put it) was created long before US even had any missile silos. They've proven themselves useful and nearly universal. They could attain a wide range of combat tasks, they were swift, they were flexible and everyone in the general staff saw that. But they were not the main fighting force. They merely speaheaded the assault. Their task was always just as simple -- to hold the ground until the main force arrives. The only difference is that they were airborne since USSR had more ground to cover and you could deliver them to any point on the map pretty quickly.
2) Let's be real, despite the fact that Russian military aircraft are probably the best in the world (or at least they were in 1980s), but when things came down to combat co-operation systems and radioelectronic warfare support, US had the upper hand. Thus, air-superiority couldn't be attained quickly enough. In all scenarios of military conflict between NATO and Warzaw Pact you only had hours (if not minutes). We could, probably, destroy all the aircraft carriers quickly enough, but we couldn't establish air-superiority over the US territory itself.
3) About this task of attacking the silos -- I doubt the attack on it would be successful. Think. You should transport a large body of paratroopers over the ocean deep into the US territory (losing 50%-70% to AA fire even before they are deployed). You won't approach undetected and the course of your attack will give the Americans plenty of time to co-ordinate the measures to repel the attack. Now, a Silo is not that 1 missile buried underground. It's a complex of many underground structures (individual missiles are scattered 20-40 km apart to minimize the chances of being all destroyed by a single nuclear hit. It has two command centers and in order to 'neutralize' the silo you should either sabotage every single missile (which is impossible in that short period of time you would have) or find and destroy all command centers (which is also extremely difficult since they are heavily defended and are built to sustain at least one direct nuclear hit. How you you open it to get in?
Now, US missiles were solid-fuel propelled and thus required no time for fueling up. They can be launched within minutes. Any number of paratroopers would have no chance of neutralizing them all within such a short period of time. I'm afraid that the only thing the surviving Soviet paratroopers see at the doors of the US silo command center would be a spectacular launch of the ICBMs.
Now, about US plans for attacking USSR.
1) In the early 80s US had no stealth technology available to them. They relied on cruise missiles and SRBM launched from nuclear subs (by the way, US had more ballistic missile carriers than Russia at any time).
2) Russian stationary silos are too scattered over large territories to prevent them being destroyed all at once and had several 'spare' command centers.
3) Russia had quite a number of mobile launch sites (refrigerator cars and mobile launchers) so you couldn't get them all in time.
As far as I know, neither side could think up a winning strategy for WW3. Perhaps, we are lucky they couldn't.
And finally, about USSR striking first.
It was US who started the so called nuclear blackmail in 1947. It was US who's changed several war plans for atomic bombardment of the USSR during 1948-1955. We attained parity in nukes by the end of 70s (past Cuban crisis and when a number of treaties were already signed), no I don't think anyone planned to strike first in 1980. Neither USSR, nor USA. Back in 50s maybe, but not in 80s.
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Originally Posted by Ramil 
