Odd story if true. Maybe the POTUS wants his new ride quicker.
BRAVE AI:
Boeing YAL-1 airborne laser demonstrator aircraft by Boeing
The Boeing YAL-1 was the United States Air Force’s (USAF) airborne laser demonstrator aircraft, designed as an anti-ballistic missile weapons system.
It was a modified Boeing 747-400F freighter developed under the Airborne Laser (ABL) program, with the primary mission of intercepting and destroying tactical ballistic missiles during their boost phase.
The aircraft first flew on July 18, 2002, and successfully demonstrated its capability by destroying a ballistic missile in flight in February 2010.
Despite this milestone, the program was canceled in 2010 due to high costs, estimated at $5 billion over 16 years, and operational limitations such as the need to operate close to enemy territory.
The sole YAL-1 was retired on September 25, 2014, and subsequently scrapped at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.
More recently, the USAF has shifted focus toward developing next-generation laser systems for fighter jets, such as the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator (SHiELD) and the Tactical Airborne Laser Weapon System (TALWS), both of which are pod-mounted, electric-powered lasers intended to defend aircraft like the F-15E, F-15C, F-15EX, and F-16 from incoming missiles.
These systems are expected to be deployed by 2025 and represent a move toward more affordable, scalable, and versatile laser defense technologies compared to the YAL-1.
Perhaps the Air Force has a new system..................
7 posted on
12/17/2025 5:02:46 AM PST by
Red Badger
(Iryna Zarutska, May 22, 2002 Kyiv, Ukraine – August 22, 2025 Charlotte, North Carolina Say her name)
This looks related to the Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) replacement for the E-4 "Nightwatch"/"Doomsday" planes. The SAOC is the new descriptor for what has been known as the National Emergency Airborne Command Post (NEACP) / National Airborne Operations Center" (NAOC) program. There are currently four 747s to be replaced.
From 2021: U.S. Air Force Looking into Acquisition Strategy; Possible Used, Commercial Derivative Aircraft for E-4B Replacement
https://www.defensedaily.com/u-s-air-force-looking-into-acquisition-strategy-possible-used-commercial-derivative-aircraft-for-e-4b-replacement/air-force/
From 2023: Sierra Nevada wins $13B contract to build Air Force ‘doomsday plane’
"...Sierra Nevada will build SAOC out of a hardened and modified version of a commercial derivative aircraft..."
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2024/04/26/sierra-nevada-wins-13b-contract-to-build-air-force-doomsday-plane/
From 2024: U.S. Air Force E-4B Doomsday Planes Replacement Program Progresses
https://theaviationist.com/2024/12/12/u-s-air-force-e-4b-doomsday-planes-replacement-program-progresses/