Why seeing this plane could mean you only have five minutes left to live as it's spotted moving amid tensions
Most nations are prepared for any impending disasters, with contingency plans often in place to protect their leaders or highest-ranking officials.
The first country that springs to mind when we talk about military-focused plans is likely the US, so it should come as no surprise that they have a 'Doomsday plane' ready to go at any given moment.
It sounds like something out of a film, but the fact is that if anything close to resembling a Third World War were to break out, they would need to be prepared.
President Donald Trump seems to be involved in most political situations which could escalate to this level, whether it be the Russia-Ukraine war or the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
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Already this year, Trump has ordered air strikes on Venezuela, followed by the abduction of their leader, Nicolás Maduro - but if the 'Doomsday plane' were to be used as a result of one of these situations escalating, what would it do?
What is the 'Doomsday plane'?
The US Air Force states: "In case of national emergency or destruction of ground command and control centers, the aircraft provides a highly survivable command, control and communications center to direct U.S. forces, execute emergency war orders, and coordinate actions by civil authorities."
It's not just any old aircraft either, it's actually the Boeing E-4B 'Nightwatch' plane, with the nation having four at its disposal and at least one always being available.
The plane is intended to be a base from which Trump and his military officials can operate from if something like a nuclear war were to befall the nation.
Known also as the National Airborne Operations Centre (NAOC), the aircraft is prepared for a global catastrophe, meaning you could genuinely have five minutes left to live if you spot it.
It is essentially a mobile war room, with the plane also able to fly for around 12 hours at 600mph and being able to refuel without landing.
The 'Doomsday plane' can apparently last a week in the sky due to these modifications.
What does it mean if you see the 'Doomsday plane'?
While the idea of it sounds a bit scary, you shouldn't get scared at the sight of one, as they can also be used to transport important officials overseas for meetings.
It has become a symbol of the worst case scenario coming true, so in an ideal world, we won't ever have to see it up above our heads.
It costs the US government $159,529 (around £120,000) per hour to operate, with the aircraft also equipped with a number of defence systems to protect against electromagnetic attack.
The plane even features analogue controls so it can't be hijacked by a cyber attack.
All four of these are usually based at US Strategic Command, located south of Omaha.
Where has the 'Doomsday plane' been spotted?
Fears have been sparked after one of the planes was spotted heading for Washington DC on flight tracking sites.
It was shown to have departed Omaha, Nebraska, on Tuesday (6 January), before landing at Camp Springs near the Capital, raising questions from the public.
The plane has been feared since its invention in the 1970s, with this feeling of uneasiness carrying on into the social media age, where news spreads like wildfire.
How are global tensions rising?
A lot is happening involving the US, with their recent abduction of Venezuelan President Maduro and the claim that the US will now 'run' his country in the meantime raising some eyebrows.
Trump also hasn't been shy in making his desire to invade territories such as Greenland known to the public, even speaking about doing things the 'hard way' to acquire the Danish territory.
He claimed that he wants Greenland to belong to the US due to the prospect of being neighbours with China or Russia, despite the US state of Alaska being just 51-55 miles from Eastern Russia.
While this could be a blow for NATO, the US has also seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker, which Moscow has called an act of 'outright piracy', in the Atlantic.
Immigration measures are also reaching an extreme level on their own soil, as an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good while she was driving her car in a highly controversial incident this week.
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News
Joshua Nair