GOLDSBORO, N.C. (WNCN) -- A Wayne County grandfather recently captured a rare sight of a U.S. military jet known as the "Doomsday plane." David McPeak of LaGrange made sure he was near the airport last week when his grandson tipped him off that the Boeing E-4 Advanced Airborne Command Post was heading to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. McPeak managed to get photos of the Boeing E-4 "Nightwatch" aircraft -- a militarized version of a Boeing 747-200 that somewhat resembles the plane typically used by the president for Air Force One. But, the general appearance is where the similarities end. There are no windows on the E-4B aircraft, which is meant to keep flying during a nuclear war, allowing U.S. commanders to continue to send orders to nuclear forces. Photo courtesy: David McPeak An E-4B when in action is called a "National Airborne Operations Center" and has been nicknamed the "Doomsday plane." David McPeak got video of the E-4B landing at Seymour Johnson on August 29 after his grandson saw it approaching on the FlightRadar24 website. "He said it looked like it was coming this way, so my granddaughter and I took off towards Seymour Johnson. That is the biggest plane she has ever seen I think, so we watched it fly the approach and then went to the other side of the base for a better view," McPeak told CBS 17. Aside from the lack of windows -- except on the doors and cockpit -- the E-4B has special pod on the roof just behind the cockpit. The pod contains various antenna, including one for super high frequency satellites. Photo courtesy: David McPeak The aircraft also features a five-mile trailing antenna -- supporting up to 13 communications links -- that can deploy via a reel to contact nuclear submarines around the world. The E-4B is protected against electromagnetic pulse effects and at least one E-4B is always on alert 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The jet is the mobile command post for the National Command Authority, which includes the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and their successors. Four E-4s are operated by the 1st Airborne Command and Control Squadron of the 595th Command and Control Group located at Offutt Air Force Base, near Omaha, Nebraska.