My dad was in the RAF. We lived in married quarters at RAF Waddington during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. We watched the standoff between the US and Russian fleets unfold in the Atlantic each night on the TV. The world was literally teetering on the brink of armageddon. I asked him one night what would happen to us if the Russians launched an attack.
Now, at that time, Waddington was home to a large part of the Vulcan first-response nuclear bomber fleet which was on instant readiness alert. A couple of squadrons bombed-up with nuclear weapons ready to go stood on the tarmac less than a mile from our house. Dad explained that, because of this, if there was an attack Waddington would be one of the first places hit, and I shouldn't worry because I wouldn't know a thing about it. I was 11 and it took a couple of minutes to figure out what he meant.