The little-known Air Force One doomsday plane – designed to protect high-ranking government officials from a nuclear attack – was sent on a four-hour training flight after Vladimir Putin put Russia’s nuclear forces on high alert.
Military flight tracking sites have revealed that the modified Boeing 747 has left the US Air Force base in Lincoln. Nebraskaon Monday night.
The E-4B conducted a training flight with other specialized military aircraft, reports The and newspaper.
The aircraft are equipped as full command centers for the President and his senior officials, including the Minister of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in case of nuclear war or national state of emergency.
These aircraft have unique capabilities that cannot be duplicated by any other aircraft used by the Air Force.
A 2010 US Air Force Boeing 747 parked on a platform in Brussels, Belgium, in 2010.
The aircraft are equipped as full command centers for the President and his senior officials, including the Minister of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the event of a nuclear war or national emergency.
Monday’s four-and-a-half-hour training flight headed to Chicago before returning to base in Nebraska. It looked like an unusual training flight, as it was joined by two Cobra Ball aircraft that could track the trajectory of a ballistic missile as well as other military aircraft.
The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment on the purpose of the exercise.
But the Doomsday flight came just a day after Putin said he had put Moscow’s nuclear forces on “special combat duty” in response to “aggressive statements” by members of NATO’s defense alliance.
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov went further on Monday, blaming UK Foreign Minister Liz Trass for the escalation.
E-4B Doomsday aircraft follow the President of the United States on his travels, whether domestic or international.
The planes, which should reach their service life by 2039, have been in operation since 1980.
The ship carries special equipment and has the ability to communicate with anyone, anywhere in the world and to support analysts and strategists in flight.
The aircraft can also be refueled in the air and remained in the air and in operation for up to 35.4 hours per stay.
Doomsday aircraft can also be refueled in the air (as pictured) and can stay in the air and run for up to 35.4 hours
However, the ship is designed to be able to operate in flight for a whole week without having to land.
Aircraft, also called “National Airborne Operations Centers”, have special equipment when in flight and have the ability to communicate with anyone from anywhere in the world and to support analysts and strategists during the flight.
The E-4Bs are commanded by the First Command and Control Air Squadron of the 595th Command and Control Group, coordinated by United States Strategic Command and located near Omaha, Nebraska, at Ofat Air Force Base.
When the president is in the United States, the Doomsday plane is kept running at all times and ready at the Off base 24 hours a day.
If the president goes abroad, E-4Bs follow and are known to crews as “Air Force One When It Counts”, according to Politician.
In the event of an emergency, one of the four ships is able to meet with Air Force One almost immediately.
The design of the aircraft is designed to survive an electromagnetic pulse with all systems intact, even to the fact that they still use traditional analog flying instruments because they are less vulnerable.
The Doomsday aircraft is able to work with the largest crew of all aircraft in the history of the US Air Force, 112 people, both flight and mission personnel. All aircraft have three decks
Four specially modified Boeing 747s – called E-4Bs or “Doomsday Planes” (pictured) – carry high-ranking members of the US government around the world. This image shows that the E-4B was withdrawn from its hangar on June 17, 2009 at the Ofat Air Force Base, Nebraska.
The planes also had refueling during the flight and were able to stay in the air and operate for up to 35.4 hours. Although it is designed to be able to work in flight for a whole week.
The planes are equipped with special equipment, including a wire antenna that can keep the president connected to the nuclear submarine fleet, even if ground communications have been destroyed.
The E-4 fleet was first operated in the 1970s during the Cold War.
By the end of the war, one of the flying combat rooms was constantly on standby at Andrew Air Force Base, ready to take off with the president on board in just 15 minutes.
These planes were considered the best way to keep the president safe in the event of a nuclear attack.
In 2006, it was rumored that the E-4B fleet would retire in 2009 under then-Defense Minister Donald Rumsfeld.
Instead, only one of the fleets retired in February 2007.
When Robert Gates took over as defense minister in May 2007, he overturned the decision and the plane returned to the Navy with its unique capabilities.