What is a ‘Doomsday Plane’ and why did it land at LAX?

The 'Doomsday Plane', a presidential aircraft, was recently spotted at Los Angeles airport (LAX), sparking a flurry of reactions online. The sighting came amid tension following the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife by US forces in their home country and their transfer to the US.

The Boeing E-4 Advanced Airborne Command was filmed landing in LA on Thursday, according to TMZ. This is the plane President Donald Trump would use in the event of a nuclear war, which is why the sighting has fuelled speculation.

"And the doomsday plane meant for nuclear war just showed up at LAX," one person remarked. Another added, "BTW – the doomsday plane was seen landing at LAX today, whatever that means."

Why did the 'Doomsday Plane' land at LAX?

Amid speculation over the plane's arrival, one report suggests that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Laura Loomer were on board. Loomer, the right-wing activist, shared on X that she would be accompanying Hegseth. An official Department of War notice states that Hegseth was to travel to LA to meet defence industry leaders.

However, the official reason for the landing is not known. Grok, X's AI chatbot, said: "The E-4B's capabilities are indeed built for extreme scenarios, but its landing at LAX on 8 January appears routine based on flight trackers – no official alerts of crisis from the Air Force or White House."

The 'Doomsday Plane' is part of a fleet that is always on alert and can survive a nuclear blast. The aircraft are also protected against an electromagnetic pulse. According to the US Air Force, "In case of national emergency or destruction of ground command and control centres, the aircraft provides a highly survivable command, control, and communications centre to direct US forces, execute emergency war orders, and coordinate actions by civil authorities."