The US Air Force ‘Doomsday Plane’ Has Been Circling Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

A military aircraft commonly nicknamed the 'Doomsday Plane' was spotted looping Michigan's Upper Peninsula in mid-January 2024.

The odd occurrence was spotted by a Flight Tracker Facebook group. The OP asks, "What the heck is this USAF 747 doing?" with a picture of a flight path showing a tight circle around the base of the Keweenaw Peninsula looping Houghton.

Check out this radar captured on January 10:

The tracking data shows that the plane is a United States Air Force Boeing E4-B. The E4-B. Specifically, the aircraft is the military's Advanced Airborne Command Post meaning the plane is designed to be a place where leadership can command missions while airborne. That's what has earned the plane the moniker of 'Doomsday Plane' or equally ominous, 'Nightwatch.'

So what was the Doomsday Plane doing over Michigan? As one clever commenter said, "If it’s on radar then nothing important."

Joking aside is there a cause for concern if this oddly named aircraft was circling the state? Likely not.

Others who have reported on the comings and goings of Nightwatch say,

the activity of the doomsday planes is no additional need for worry. It's just normal precautions of our military at work.

One commenter on the tread may have served aboard a similar aircraft and is aware of these circing missions,

Those were fun missions flying in circles for hours. Lots of work! We would usually donate $5-$10 to the flight crew the day before. They would go grocery shopping and they would usually cook up a pork loin or broil a chicken, steak, loaded potato on board the jet. Dessert was usually some kind of cake, cookies or key lime pie. The jet has a full galley kitchen.

The fleet is generally based at Offit AFB in Omaha and the flight over Michigan appeared to originate from Chicagoland.

The Doomsday Plane bears the 'United States of America' across the fuselage, likely leading to a comparison to Air Force One. However, the Presidential seal does not appear on Nightwatch. Check out the inside look of the Doomsday Plane.