On Friday morning, U. S. President Donald Trump tested for the new coronavirus and, shortly before the information, U. S. Navy apocalyptic aircraft were introduced on any of america’s shores.
Some observers said the two were related, but military spokesmen and some experts said it was a coincidence.
“I can verify that those flights planned missions ahead of time,” Karen Singer, spokesperson for U. S. Strategic Command, told CNN’s Jim Sciutto.
The E-6B Mercury is one of the Pentagon’s airborne nuclear command posts. The 4 engines, derived from the Boeing 707 aircraft, are equipped with communications systems and special crews to command ohio-class U. S. Navy nuclear submarines. But it’s not the first time
The Navy has 16 Mercurys; Il has one in the air, and it’s not unusual for two or more to be in flight at the same time, but the timing of Friday’s dual releases seemed appealing to some.
In an atomic war, the E-6s were transmitting orders to Ohio boomers, helping to send crews to attack enemy cities and army bases with ballistic missiles introduced through nuclear-tipped Trident submarines, or SLBM.
Not that the E-6s flew over both coasts in the minutes before Trump announced his infection, tweeted Tim Hogan, an American open source intelligence practitioner.
But another open source expert, Canadian Steffan Watkins, disagreed: “Tim doesn’t know what he’s talking about and there’s nothing about E-6 movements,” Watkins tweeted.
Hans Kristensen, a nuclear energy expert at the Federation of American Scientists, said Strategic Command had planned primary training by October that could be just the E-6’s dual missions.
Hours after Trump’s announcement, two other E-6s took off at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma. However, these departures were obviously for educational purposes, as the Mercurys are in Tinker.
The goal of Mercury’s bicoccosta flights may be just a dispute, but the precautions the president may have taken to protect himself against the new coronavirus, and therefore controversy, are not: wearing a mask and being in close contact with others are the most important thing. productive tactics to prevent infections.
Trump has moved away from both of them. On Tuesday, the 74-year-old president mocked Joe Biden, his 77-year-old Democratic rival in the current election, for taking precautions. “I don’t wear a mask like him, ” said Trump, look at him, he has a mask. “
Hogan tracked the E-6s in public software that records aircraft radio transponders. Military aircraft shut down their transponders to avoid being followed. If the transponders of an army plane are on, it’s because their crews need to be seen.
In the case of E-6s, “it is a message to the small organization of the parties to conflict with SLBM and intercontinental ballistic missiles,” Hogan said. According to his reasoning, the Pentagon may need America’s atomic armed rivals: Russia, China, and North Korea. – know that the U. S. nuclear command formula is intact, even if the commander-in-chief is simply ill.
The Pentagon played calmly. ” There has been no replacement at our alert levels,” an army spokeswoman told Policy reporter Lara Seligman. “The U. S. military is in a position to protect our country and its citizens. There is no replacement in the preparation or capacity of our armed forces. “
Many others get the new coronavirus but never experience side effects or even symptoms. Although Trump has said he is infected, it is not known if he is very ill. tasks while recovering,” said Sean Conley, Trump’s official physician.
This story has been updated as new data has emerged.