Jun 17, 2025 08:15 AM IST
Late Monday, the U.S. WC-135R nuclear sniffer plane took off from Offutt Air Force Base.
Late Monday night, the U.S. nuclear “sniffer” plane WC-135R ‘Constant Phoenix’ aircraft departed from Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska, the home of U.S. Strategic Command.
Known informally as the “nuclear sniffer,” the WC-135R is one of only three planes of its kind in existence. It’s built for a very specific mission: to detect airborne radioactive particles and signs of nuclear fallout in real time. These aircraft are rarely deployed and usually only sent out when there’s reason to suspect a nuclear event could be imminent.
Air Force Times reported that the plane has been flying unusual patterns over the northern United States. While the Pentagon has not issued an official statement, its appearance follows unconfirmed reports that Israeli airstrikes may have hit Iranian nuclear facilities.
HT.com has not independently verified the authenticity of this information.
On top of that, Tehran has issued strong warnings about potential retaliation.
However, Brandon Holley, a Wireless Infrastructure Engineer, clarifed in an X thread, “That was a training flight and its flight pattern aligns with flying over USSTRATCOM bases and some of our silo fields.”
