One of the U.S. Air Force’s secretive planes is pretending to be a vessel from the far, far future‐the 23rd century, in fact. A U-2 spy plane took off from Northern California today broadcasting the aviation code NCC-1701A, which, as all Star Trek fans know, is the designation for the USS Enterprise.
U-2 from Beale AFB disguised as the USS Enterprise! 🤣👍
"NCC1701A" pic.twitter.com/4pcdHLambB
‐ Aircraft Spots (@AircraftSpots) January 30, 2019
The Twitter account @AircraftSpots monitors military air movements, typically through the Automatic Dependent Surveillance‐Broadcast (ADS-B) aircraft tracking system. Such transmitters are required in all civil aircraft across the United States to help other pilots and controllers ID them. Some U.S. military aircraft are equipped with the system, too. ADS-B is a boon to plane spotters, allowing hobbyists on the ground to watch the comings and goings of vast numbers of aircraft.