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. THIRTEEN BILLION DOLLARS - for ONE airplane. |