Thirteen Days (book) Thirteen Days (book) Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis is Robert F. Kennedy's account of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The book was released in 1969, a year after his assassination. "Thirteen Days" describes the meetings held by the Executive Committee (ExComm), the team assembled by US President John F. Kennedy to handle the tense situation that developed between the United States and the Soviet Union following the discovery of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, from Florida. Robert Kennedy, who was the US Attorney General at the time, describes his brother John's leadership style during the
577th Strategic Missile Squadron dispersed launch sites comprised the missile squadron. In August 1962, the squadron was the first to place an Atlas F missile on alert status. In October, all 12 missiles were put on alert status as a result of the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Atlas F was the final and most advanced version of the Atlas ICBM and was stored in a vertical position inside underground concrete and steel silos. When stored, the Atlas F sat atop an elevator. If a missile was placed on alert, it was fueled with RP-1 (kerosene) liquid fuel, which could be stored inside the missile