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Civic Register
| 10.24.17

Fact Tuesday: Nuclear Codes

In an interview with Defense One, Gen. David Goldfein, Air Force chief of staff, said his branch is preparing to put nuclear-armed B-52s back on 24-hour ready alert — a move not seen since the Cold War.

This got Countable thinking about the "Football" — the small briefcase whose contents allow the president to give orders to authorize a nuclear attack.

Here are some facts about the piece of luggage you never want to lose.

  • Commonly known as "The Football," its official name is the “president’s emergency response satchel”.

  • The Football is carried by military aides who always stay within a few feet of the president.

  • The Football is built around a sturdy aluminum frame encased in black leather.

  • Contrary to what movies have you believe, the Football doesn’t open up to reveal a big red button—its purpose is to confirm the identity of the president, and allow the commander in chief to communicate with the Pentagon’s National Military Command Center.

  • The 45-pound satchel contains four items: a top secret black book outlining response options; a booklet explaining the Emergency Alert System; a listing of classified locations throughout the U.S. where the president can safely go during or after a nuclear attack; and a card with authentication codes. (Bonus fact: President George W. Bush used the classified safe-location list during the 9/11 attacks).

  • The laminated authentication-code carried by the president at all times is nicknamed the "Biscuit".

  • The Football was "invented" in response to the concerns of President John F. Kennedy. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, Kennedy posed the following two questions: “What would I say to the Joint War Room to launch an immediate nuclear strike?” and “How would the person who received my instructions verify them?”

  • JFK’s Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, said the Football got its name from an early nuclear war plan code-named "Dropkick." (As The Smithsonian explained: “‘Dropkick’ needed a ‘football’ in order to be put into effect.”)

  • The president has complete authority to order a nuclear attack, from the launch of a single missile to massive strikes from all elements of the nuclear triad: aircraft with atomic weapons, submarine-launched missiles, land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMS).

—Josh Herman

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(Photo Credit: Stubborn3D / YouTube)