If you ever see this plane overhead, it may signal impending doom. The “doomsday plane” sounds like fiction, but global leaders have contingency plans for worst-case scenarios.
Known as the Boeing E-4 or National Airborne Operations Centre (NAOC), this aircraft is built for nuclear war or catastrophe. Designed as a mobile war room for the U.S. President, it can fly for 12 hours at 600 mph and refuel mid-air, staying airborne for a week.
Developed in the 1970s, the E-4 was created to help a Cold War president survive a nuclear attack and launch retaliation. Russia has a similar “Flying Kremlin” for its leader.
Operating these planes costs $159,529 per hour. They’re equipped with defenses against electromagnetic pulses and cyberattacks. The U.S. has four, with one always on high alert. Packed with advanced communication tech, they can hold 112 people—though in a nuclear apocalypse, who would they be talking to?
