Boeing E-4

Boeing · United States · first flew 1973 · transport aircraft

The Boeing E-4 Advanced Airborne Command Post, nicknamed Nightwatch, is a United States Air Force command and control aircraft converted from the Boeing 747-200B.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Low-mounted, swept
E — Engines	4 × turbofan, wing-mounted
F — Fuselage	E-4B has a large streamlined radome on the back of the fuselage behind the upper deck, housing the satellite antenna
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Boeing 747 airframe with the distinctive upper-deck hump
E-4B has a large streamlined radome on the back of the fuselage behind the upper deck, housing the satellite antenna
Four General Electric F103 turbofans under the swept low wing

A white 747 with a blue cheatline, the upper-deck hump and a dorsal satellite radome behind it.

Specifications

The Boeing E-4 has a length of 70.5 m (231 ft).
It has a wingspan of 59.6 m (196 ft).
Its maximum speed is 969 km/h (602 mph).
Typical crew: 4.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Boeing received a contract in February 1973 for two unequipped E-4A aircraft under the National Emergency Airborne Command Post programme. The first flight was on 13 June 1973, and a fourth aircraft, the first E-4B, was ordered in December 1973.

Variants

The three E-4As were retrofitted to E-4B standard by January 1985. The E-4B has greatly improved communications and is hardened against electromagnetic pulse. The E-4B is to be replaced by the SNC E-4C.

Where you'll see it

Four E-4s serve with the 1st Airborne Command and Control Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, as a survivable mobile command post for the president and senior defence leaders.

Related aircraft

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