The ‘nuclear football’

♦The US president is accompanied anywhere he goes by a mid-ranking military official carrying a briefcase with everything needed to launch a nuclear weapon.

♦ The briefcase (in the officer’s left hand) is dubbed the nuclear “football” after an attack plan code-named “drop kick”. The football was needed to implement the drop kick.

♦ It contains the means to communicate with National Military Command Center, a “menu” of strike options, a list of bunker sites and a plastic “biscuit” card with authentication codes. ♦ John F Kennedy is believed to have been the president who started the practice after becoming concerned about nuclear procedures following the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

♦ The bag is leather but contains a metal Halliburton case, meaning it weighs around 20kg – a source of regular complaints in the past.