Inside Bob Gates's Flying Fortress

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The usual Sunday evening rush hour at one of the world's busiest international airports was disrupted tonight by a plane that rarely appears in public  — a white Boeing 747 with the words 'United States of America' emblazoned on its side and with odd bumps and antenna protruding from its fuselage, maneuvered around the dozens of commercial airliners, trying, unsuccessfully, to blend in.

The modified 747 is the so-called 'National Airborne Operations Center' (NAOC) — informally known as the 'Doomsday Plane' because it is designed to serve as the Pentagon's backup headquarters in case of a catastrophic attack on the United States. The NAOC on alert 24 hours a day, seven days a week — although there are four identical planes that rotate duty, and also serve as backup to Air Force One. When President Bush's plane blew some tires while in Vietnam recently, the NAOC flew in to drop off the spare set that it routinely carries for itself. Unlike Air Force One, the NAOC can refuel in midair and is designed and supplied with engine oil, and food and water for the crew to be able to stay aloft for days. Its full crew includes intelligence analysts, communications specialists, maintenance troops, and even its own security force. It constantly monitors all major U.S. commands and the location of nuclear forces, keeps an eye on potentially hostile military troops, gathers intelligence data, and monitors the whereabouts of every U.S. government official in the line of succession. The NAOC also carries with it at all times about a dozen of the most relevant war plans in case senior officers need them at hand.

As a mobile Pentagon, the plane can serve as an efficient mobile office for the Secretary of Defense and his staff, which is how it came to Heathrow. Defense Secretary Robert Gates touched down in London to talk  with Prime Minister Tony Blair and other British officials about Iraq and Afghanistan.

In the course of the transatlantic flight, Secretary Gates wandered back to talk to his staff, NAOC crew members and reporters along for the trip. Gates brings a humble,  understated demeanor to the job in  stark contrast to his predecessor, Donald Rumsfeld.

When a reporter asked Gates if he realized how much he was risking his reputation by taking this job and possibly failing, Gates sitting comfortably amidst the reporters, thought for a moment. And then for another moment. (For reporters used to the rapid-fire and combative Rumsfeld, this thoughtful pause was momentarily confusing.) Then, he said, "If our nation is at war, in Iraq and Afghanistan, and around the world against terrorism, and there are problems like Iran and North Korea, and the President says we need your help, I don't know how somebody who loves his country says no." He continued, "If you put personal interests, including protecting your reputation ahead of your sense of duty, then you've got your values screwed up."