US spends $13 billion to continue building new 'Doomsday' plane
The US says it will develop a new “doomsday” plane that would allow the president to continue leading the country in the event of a nuclear war or other major disaster that would destroy ground-based command and control centres.
According to Reuters and RT, a US Air Force spokesman announced on April 26 that a $13 billion contract for the Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) project has been awarded to Sierra Nevada. Work on the new strategic command and control aircraft will be carried out at the company's facilities in Colorado, Nevada and Ohio. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2036.
The SAOC aircraft is based on a commercial aircraft prototype but will be adjusted and modified to meet Pentagon standards, an Air Force spokesman said.
“The development of this critical national security weapon system ensures the Department’s nuclear command, control, and communications capabilities are operationally secure and operationally viable for decades to come,” the statement said.
The SAOC project is being deployed to replace aging aircraft that have existed since the 1970s and are nearing the end of their service life, such as the E-4B Nightwatch (also known as the National Airborne Operations Center) currently used by the US Air Force.
The E-4Bs, which are based on the Boeing 747 design, have been around since the mid-1970s. They are scheduled to retire in the early 2030s. According to Reuters, maintaining the planes is becoming increasingly difficult as their parts become obsolete.
The US Air Force operates four “doomsday” planes, at least one of which is constantly on alert. The E-4Bs carry advanced communications equipment, are capable of mid-air refueling, and can withstand nuclear blasts and various electromagnetic effects.
Russia also has four “doomsday” planes based on the Ilyushin Il-80. The plane first flew in 1985, but in recent years its onboard communications equipment has been upgraded. A source told RIA-Novosti in 2022 that the planes could exchange data with Russian nuclear submarines.
