Airborne Pentagon E-4B Alert Crews Ready to Jump into Action at the Sound of a Horn

The familiar sound of a horn ends early afternoon rountines in several areas on base. A radio operator immediately stops his workout in the fitness center. A flight attendant leaves her groceries behind on the commissary checkout counter. Two maintainers start the engines on the E-4B National Airborne Operations Center aircraft and wait for the rest of the crew. The crewmembers don't know if the horn signaled an exercise alert or a real-world emergency, so they react as they reat as they were trained.

"With each alert, you don't know if it's a practice horn or a real horn," said Master Sgt. Harry Menard, the lead production superintendent with the 55th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., where 4B crews continue to pull alert duty that has been a requirement for 35 years. "But after you've done this for a long time like I have, it's kind of like riding a bike. You get used to it and you know what's going to happen, so it becomes a reaction instead of just anticipation. The horn will go off and you just react to it because you know what you have to do and you get it done."

The converted Boeing 747 is the airborne operations center for the president, secretary of defense and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The airplane also serves as a survivable command, control and communications center to direct forces and execute war orders it an attack were to destroy command control centers on the ground.

One of the 1st Airborne Command Control Squadron's four E-4B aircraft remains on alert at all times with a fully manned battle staff, whether at Offutt or at one of many bases elsewhere in the world. The other three aircraft are either at the Boeing Depot in Wichita, Kan., for maintenance, with the squadron trainer or getting washed and lubed. Because the airplane is a 24-hour command center, its external power source is always running and it's ready for takeoff with three maintainers on board who are certified to start the engines.

Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan called the E-4B "the doomsday airplane" when they were passengers. But the flying command center is more commonly known by its project name, "Nightwatch," a nickname inspired by the Rembrandt painting that shows townspeople protecting their town in the dark. A print of the painting hangs on a wall in the NAOC head-quarters, located on Nightwatch Street. The E-4B's nickname goes hand-in-hand with the crewmembers' philosophy of always being alert and prepared for action.

"It's really a sense of what we're here for. When everybody else is asleep, we're still watching," said Col. Marty Doebel, NAOC commander. Colonel Doebel has worked with the E-4B through more than half of the three and a half decades its crews have remained on alert.

The 747 airplane looks like Air Force One from a distance as it lands on a flightline, with its long blue line and the words "United States of America" visible on both sides of its white surface. Like Air Force One, the airplane has enhanced nuclear, thermal and electromagnetic pulse protection and a variety of new communications and other technical systems. But up close you can see there's no presidential seal.

Air Force One "is the five-star hotel and we're the motel," Colonel Doebel said. "But, man, we have a lot of capability packed into this motel. The lights are on 24/7. We've really focused on what you would expect to see inside a modern office and what the secretary of defense has access to in his office."

The E-4B's main deck is divided into compartments, including work areas, a conference room, briefing room, and operations and rest areas. The plane normally carries a crew of about 60, but could hold as many as 112 people

However, while Air Force One has the sole mission of transporting the president, the E-4B is intended to be an airborne command center and gives the secretary of defense and staff members an aircraft with offices that can function as if they were in their own offices. The secretary has the plane available for overseas travel so he can communicate securely with senior government and military officials. He also can speak to his office staff and subject-matter experts at the Pentagon through video-teleconferences from the plane.

It is a fully-equipped communications platform and can serve as an airborne command center for all military forces in a crisis. The plane's electronics system covers frequencies from very low to extremely high. This capability enables the secretary of defense to communicate with all military commands worldwide, including tactical and strategic forces, naval ships, planes, nuclear-armed missile facilities and submarines.

"The difference between a fixed command center and ours is this one has wings, so it can fly away from a threat," Colonel Doebel said. "We operate the aircraft whether it's flying or on the ground as an active backup to the National Military Command Center at the Pentagon."

Three battle staffs with members from all four services work on a three-week cycle. While one battle staff is on alert, another is preparing for their week on alert and the other has time off to take care of personal and military business.

Battle staff members pass decisions made by the president, secretary of defense and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the forces. Everyone in one of the battle staff positions has to satisfy requirements of the Personal Reliability Program, which helps to ensure that each member can be trusted with the important responsibilities of the job. The program is similar to a security clearance investigation, but more of "a day-to-day, 24-7 check," Colonel Doebel said.

"You absolutely cannot make a mistake with (these decisions)," he said. "You can't have a mistake from the standpoint of not accurately conveying a decision the president has made, or something being transmitted that the president didn't decide. There is zero tolerance for messing that up. So we train on that on a regular basis, and we are stringent with our criteria, whether it's an exercise or an actual decision."

Marine Corps Maj. Matt Stover, a battle staff emergency action officer, is no stranger to responding with urgency. He has worked in search and rescue, as well as a C-130 Hercules and H-46 Sea Knight helicopter pilot. Most people feel nervous when they hear the horn; the answer is to make yourself as competent in your job as possible, according to Major Stover.

"You never get used to hearing it," he said. "You basically go from zero to 60 in nothing flat. Even if you're ready for it, your heart's pounding. All you can do is be confident in your abilities to do your job. The rest is going to take care of itself."

Crewmembers live in a small compound at the NAOC headquarters while on alert. They are limited to certain parts of the base that are equipped with notification sirens so they can hear the horn and respond quickly. Each crewmember learns from experience tricks that speed response time, whether sleeping, showering or studying. E-4B officials don't say how long it usually takes from sounding the alert to takeoff, but will say it's quick.

"Let's just say it's amazing how fast it happens," said Lt. Col. David B. Gaskill, 1st ACCS commander. "It's an amazingly, impressive and fast response."

Staff Sgt. Elena Alonzo knew she wanted to fly on a large airplane with an important mission when she studied radio operations in technical school. She received both parts of her wish with her assignment as an E-4B radio operator.

"When we were hearing about all of the different platforms, I knew I really wanted a large airframe," she said. "I said, 'I want to go to Offutt. I want to fly in the big plane.' It definitely sounded like a cool mission to me. How many Airmen get to fly secretary of defense and presidential missions?"

The first time Sergeant Alonzo heard the horn for an alert, she was eating lunch with friends at the Fairchild AFB, Wash., golf course. The bases where the E-4B lands are equipped with the Klaxon alert response system, so the crew checks it after landing. As soon as Sergeant Alonzo and the other crewmembers heard the horn, they jumped into a van and ran to the airplane as quickly as possible for the flight back to Offutt.

"We found out later in the day that we didn't have to go anywhere, but it was quite the experience, an adrenaline rush," Sergeant Alonzo said. "My instructors tried to prepare me for the first time I had to respond to the horn, but I don't know if you can ever be really prepared for the first couple of times you hear it."

When Staff Sgt. Krystal Lerohl joined the E-4B crew as a flight attendant, she faced a lot of new challenges that were different from anything she'd seen in her Air Force career. Everything was new, from the size of the plane and the duties of a flight attendant to responding to the horn. Two years later, preparation and training has training has replaced the panic.

"It's always a surprise because you never know when it's going to go off," said Sergeant Lerohl. "But I think I've gotten better because I know what to do now. I'm not sleeping in my uniforms anymore like I did in my first three alerts. I still have my things bunched and ready, though."

In 2005, Department of Defense officials made the decision to retire the entire E-4B fleet, beginning in 2009 and ending in 2011. However, that decision was ultimately reversed following additional studies and risk assessments, with the entire E-4B fleet now programmed to remain in service and continue its mission for at least another decade.

"I think a version of this aircraft will go on until they can find a better way to do what it does," Colonel Doebel said. "The deputy secretary of defense directed that an analysis of alternatives be conducted to explore suitable alternatives to the aircraft. But even if a decision is made soon, we wouldn't see a replacement aircraft until at least the early 2020s. We're anticipating the E-4B will be supporting the NAOC mission until at least 2020."

So E-4B crews will continue to keep their travel bags packed and ready to respond whenever they hear the alert horn. The flight attendant, communications specialists and mechanics can go back to the grocery store and the gym. This time, the alert wasn't a real crisis. But they know any time they hear the horn, it could be.

Twenty Years of Sacrificing on the Hunt

On most days, Hallie Braland's two young children handle their father's deployment well. While they miss their daddy, the children have learned to cope because Staff Sgt. Eric Braland deploys for about 120 days a year. It's all part of the job for this 55th Maintenance Squadron mechanic at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. The Bralands have family in Nebraska, but while her husband is away, Hallie fulfills a dual role as mother and father. But on this day, the children are having one of those days where emotions run high and they're not quite as understanding about why their father is gone.

"You have to listen to me," Hallie tells them firmly, "because I'm the only one here right now."

Sacrifices by deployed Airmen and their families are a fact of life at Offutt AFB. The Airmen with the 55th Wing deploy with the RC-135 Rivet Joint aircraft. In August, they will reach the 20th consecutive year of deploying to Southwest Asia. The "Fightin' 55th" is the only wing in the Air Force that has maintained a continuous presence in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility since Operation Desert Storm. Airmen in the wing have averaged three deployments a year during that time.

Wing leaders don't anticipate an end to the streak anytime soon.

"If you have a requirement forward for F-15 aircraft, you can rotate through several wings that have those, and they will deploy for 120 days, and be done for a while," said Lt. Col. Chris Canada, 55th Wing director of staff. "But there's only one place to get an RC-135, and that's right here. So no matter what (Air and Space Expeditionary Force) band is being exercised, we're in it.

The 55th Wing's RC-135s are reconnaissance aircraft that provide near real-time, on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities. The information RC-135 crews collect is combined with visual intelligence to provide a complete picture of the situation for ground forces. The aircraft's capabilities make them "the eyes and ears for ground forces" in Southwest Asia.

"Reaching 20 years of continuous deployment is a significant milestone because it shows the perseverance of the people in the 55th Wing, and the thirst for what we provide," said Colonel Canada. "We are one of the few wells ... and there are a lot of thirsty commanders out there for what we can provide."

Wing members live up to the motto of Rivet Joint crew members: "Always on the Hunt." The continuous deployment streak began on Aug. 9, 1990, when RC-135 crews deployed to Saudi Arabia for 24-hour reconnaissance after Saddam Hussein's armed forces invaded Kuwait. The first deploying RC-135 crew flew a combat reconnaissance mission in support of Operation Desert Shield while on the way to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

"We were one of the first in and we never left," Colonel Canada said. "Being deployed ... has always been something this wing has done. Even before Desert Shield we had the expectation of being deployed 30 days and home for 30 days."

The sacrifices of deployment are nothing new for wing leaders, beginning with Colonel Canada and Lt. Col. Wes Smith, the 55th Wing inspector general. Both were deployed frequently in the early days of operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. While on his second deployment in February 1991, Colonel Smith's first daughter was born. She is now a college freshman.

"In August 1990, we were in Alaska flying missions when Iraq invaded Kuwait, so we were re-directed back to Offutt and then to the Middle East," Colonel Smith said. "By the time we got back to the staging area further in the Middle East, there were already planes in the theater, so we stopped in Athens, Greece, and flew missions out of there, while keeping an eye on the Mediterranean. In November, we went in for Desert Shield and in February for Desert Storm. We stayed there for the duration of the war."

Colonels Canada and Smith understand the stress multiple deployments can have on younger Airmen and their families. They remember what it was like as a young lieutenant or captain away from the family for months at a time in the first few years of marriage.

"Some of us who have been a part of these deployments are a bit older, but there are a lot of folks who are pretty young when they are on their first deployment," Colonel Canada said. "Being married by itself is an adventure, especially when you're young. But throw in an extended separation, not just for a business trip but one where you're potentially in harm's way, and there are a lot of things that can go on in people's minds as far as concerns and expectations.

"During Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm, I had been married for about two years, but we didn't have any children," he said. "That definitely would've weighed on my mind a bit. Obviously, you go out and do the mission no matter what, but in the back of my mind I would think I'm going to miss a birthday or, with a newborn, I maybe missing the first steps or another of those important milestones."

During two decades of uninterrupted deployments, the wing's Airmen experienced many changes. The RC-135 has new engines and a glass cockpit with digital instrument panels that replaced round-dial analog gauges from the Operation Desert Storm era. Even the deployment lengths are different. In the early days, members deployed for 60 or 90 days. The number has gone back and forth, but 120-day deployments are now the standard. The mission also has changed from Cold War deterrence to that of following a less conventional enemy. But the fact that the 55th Wing deploys will not change.

"We've always had a deployed nature," Colonel Smith said. "Some folks go for a total of about six months in their military careers. A lot of our folks are gone from 180 to 210 days a year constantly, so there's a recurring need for family support at home."

A key resource for deploying Airmen is the Airman and Family Readiness Center where trained staff are available to help a family plan for the deployment.

"We've bolstered squadron-level programs to help us keep up with spouses and families of deployed members," Colonel Canada said. "If there's something going on and a family needs help, the commanders and first sergeants are aware and can help them out. We have a strong spouse network, particularly at the squadron level. They can share concerns, exchange baby-sitting and support each other like that to help out when you have a military member gone for 30 to 45 days or longer."

Changes that improve daily, deployed life are the advancements of personal technologies, especially the tools available to keep in touch with family back home. Colonels Canada and Smith can remember deployments before e-mail was an option, when occasional telephone calls were the only means of communication. Now there are video chats via laptop computers, more telephones, e-mail and other communication options during deployments. Families also learned communication is just as important before the separation.

"Repeated deployments are hard on marriages," said Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Oledia Bell, deputy wing chaplain. "My suggestion is that couples insulate themselves prior to a deployment If they don't practice good closeness before the deployment, the time during a deployment can be very difficult and has the ability to rupture families. I think deployments can be emotionally stressful. But even with the stress, it seems that military members and their families are resilient. They do what's asked of them and more."

Serena Pulley arrived at Offutt AFB in November only a few months after she and her husband were married. A month later, Airman 1st Class Brandon Pulley, an airborne systems engineer with the 38th Reconnaissance Squadron, was scheduled for his first deployment. Unlike Eric and Hallie Braland, the families of Pulley and her husband aren't in Nebraska, but in North Carolina. Airman Pulley expected to miss Christmas and his wife's birthday in March. She was more concerned with what her husband would face than with what she would.

"Of course, I'm afraid for him to go out of the country to a place he's never been before," she said. "I won't be able to see him and talk to him every day, and that worries me somewhat. But, I know it's part of his job. Right now, I'm just trying to get familiar with everybody and find friends, and maybe a job to keep me busy during the day."

Before he left, Airman Pulley said his thoughts were on how his wife would handle the separation. He knew he would miss her, especially during the holidays, but he was also thinking about the mission and doing the job he was trained for in an unfamiliar place.

"I'll be concerned with what's going on with her while I'm over there," Airman Pulley said. "But I'm also hoping I can do my job to the fullest, especially since it's my first deployment. I've been told you learn so much in your first deployment."

Single Airmen face their own set of challenges. Tech. Sgt. James Vinson said being deployed about 160 days a year for most of the seven years he's been at Offutt AFB makes sustaining friendships and dating relationships difficult.

Sergeant Vinson, a 55th Maintenance Squadron aerospace ground equipment craftsman, was accustomed to frequent deployments at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, before coming to Offutt AFB. While he said he's proud to be a part of the 20-year milestone, being gone so much has an impact. He said just when he gets to the point of getting to know someone, it seems like it's time to leave for another deployment.

"When you're single, it makes a drastic impact on your relationships, especially with meeting new people," Sergeant Vinson said. "You also miss out on a lot of stuff while you're gone (with) your family back home; a lot of holidays and birthdays. Out of the 11 years I've been in the Air Force, this is the second Christmas I'll get to spend at home. I'm thankful that I have an understanding family. They know what I do is important."

Because the unit, due to its unique mission, stays together and deploys together, it can become a family of a different kind.

"I do enjoy the camaraderie of going to a location because the people there become your family," said Sergeant Vinson. "They are your brothers and sisters, the people who watch your back and help keep you safe."

While the wing is full of Airmen with multiple deployments, there are also several people such as Staff Sgt. Kara Welte and Airman 1st Class David Reichel, who haven't gone yet. As a 97th Intelligence Squadron airborne cryptologic linguist. Sergeant Welte is responsible for using signals equipment to detect and identify enemy communications. Airman Reichel is a 55th Maintenance Squadron aerospace ground equipment mechanic. Both are anticipating their first deployments in January.

"I had no idea when I first came to Offutt that we would deploy as much as they do here," said Airman Reichel. "After the first few months in the shop, I heard by word of mouth. The bottom line is I expect to do my job just like I do here. I have a few friends here who are doing the same thing I am because we're deploying at about the same time. But I'm really not worried about my deployment. I'm looking forward to it."

Before leaving for her first deployment, Sergeant Welte gathered advice from the wing's more seasoned deployers on everything from what to pack to how to make the most of the experience. Because she has to carry so much equipment for the job, she learned to limit the personal items.

"I've learned you should pack as little as you can," Sergeant Welte said. "We have three 150-pound bags issued for our equipment, so I know I need to pack light and not to take anything I won't really need in the desert."

While the Airmen learn what they need to know to make deploying bearable, the families at home learn lessons of their own.

"The biggest thing I've learned is that I have zero control over anything," said Sergeant Braland. "Do not expect or anticipate anything to happen, because you have no idea. You don't know exactly when they're coming home, so don't get your hopes up. You just take it one day at a time and try not to get so worked up."