submarines was the Demonstration and Shakedown Operation (DASO), which was conducted off Cape Kennedy in Florida. This operation culminated in the firing of a Polaris missile down the US Air Force Eastern Test Range to a target up to 2500 nautical miles away. The Ministry of Defence planned, in 1963, to fire Britain's first Polaris missile at 11.15 Eastern Standard Time on 15th February, 1968 - HMS Resolution failed to achieve this by just 15 milliseconds, but the firing was otherwise fully successful! Deterrent patrols began in 1969.
VIGILANCE MAINTAINED
Being the United Kingdom's contribution to NATO's strategic. nuclear deterrent, at least one Polaris submarine was to be constantly on patrol, sailing submerged 'one knew not where',
