A United States Air Force Boeing WC-135R aircraft, nicknamed the “nuclear sniffer,” issued a distress signal off the coast of the United Kingdom, according to a report by the North Norfolk News newspaper.
This “nuclear sniffer” took off from Mildenhall base in Suffolk and set a course across the North Sea toward Norway. After approximately ninety minutes operating over Scandinavian airspace, the plane turned around, and near the British coast, the crew declared an emergency aboard using the 7700 code.
The Boeing WC-135R Constant Phoenix is derived from the Boeing C-135 Stratolifter and serves the purpose of detecting and analyzing contamination following nuclear weapon tests.
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