The U.S. Air Force said on Friday that it has awarded a $13 billion contract to Sierra Nevada Corp to develop a successor to the E-4B, known as the Doomsday plane due to its ability to survive a nuclear war.
The Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) project is intended to replace the aging 1970s-era aircraft, which is approaching end-of-service life, an Air Force spokesperson said in a statement.
Work on the SAOC will be carried out in Colorado, Nevada and Ohio and is expected to be completed in 2036, the Air Force added.
Reuters in December reported that the U.S. Air Force eliminated Boeing from its competition to develop a successor to the E-4B Nightwatch.
75ish years seems like a great lifespan for a plane
The B-52 has been flying since 1952, 74 years, so yeah that’s on the high end
Note that there have also been a lot of upgrades. Like, the basic airframe of the 1952 B-52 may be the same as the 2024 B-52, but the stuff onboard has changed a lot over the years.
I’d guess, though I don’t know, that the same is probably true of the E-4.
Aerodynamics and metal fatigue hasn’t changed much of any at all in a century.
Once you have a good airframe design, it just becomes a matter of upgrading electronics, engines, regular repairs, and servicing parts that are known to be prone to metal fatigue.
Hence why the B-52 which was first flown in 1952 will likely be in service until 2060!