Being the president of any country has to come with its share of perks (and dangers.) However, being the president of the free world must come with a bright spotlight and plenty of protection and benefits.
A quick look at the vast array of presidential rides will support this notion. From Air Force 1 to Marine 1 to the bulletproof limousine nicknamed The Beast, it is without a doubt that the POTUS rolls deep.
Here are some amazing facts about Donald Trump’s Presidential ride.
The limousine that the president is regularly seen out in is called The Beast and with good reason. It’s slathered with steel, aluminum, titanium, and ceramic.
Although a lot of information in regards to The Beast is designated as classified, what the public does know is that it sports 5 inch thick bulletproof windows and the fuel tank is sealed with foam to prevent explosions.
The bottom of the limo is also armored to prevent grenades or explosives from being tossed underneath and the doors are eight inches thick. This is as heavy as a 757 plane’s cabin door.
An interesting tidbit is that none of the windows open on the limousine beside the driver’s window which only opens a measly three inches.
The limo also comes with its own satellite phone and comes with a direct line to the Vice President. There are three ‘Beasts’ so that no one knows which limo the President is actually in and it also acts as a vehicle for other VIPs or Vice Presidents.
Furthermore, the limo comes with firefighting equipment, an oxygen tank and blood that is specific to the president’s blood type!
The Beast also runs on run-flats which allow the limo to stay on the road despite being attacked. Adding onto that is the fact that the limo is sealed from the inside so that the president is safe from chemical attacks.
You should know by now that any fleet of cars that roll with the president is armed to the teeth. And The Beast is no different, it comes with gas canisters, shotguns, gas cannons and night vision cameras in the front of the vehicle.
To many people’s surprise, The Beast is actually not a Cadillac and rather it is made by GM. It has been reported that GM spent over 15 million dollars in research and development alone.
The giant ride runs on diesel because it is less flammable and thus less likely to explode (even though the gas tank is sealed with a foam that prevents any sort of explosions.)
However, The Beast has a fuel economy rating of a measly 8 mpg while others dispute this by saying it has an even lower 4 miles per gallon.
The Beast can get up to 60 mph in 15 seconds but despite its gas guzzling tendencies and armored body, it is driven by a very specific Secret Service Agent who is specialized in driving large vehicles quickly and safely.
And then there are the planes. You don’t expect the POTUS to hop on a commercial airline, do you? And I’m not even talking about Air Force 1, I am talking about the fleet of planes that deliver the president’s motorcade.
Whichever country the president decides to visit, his fleet of vehicles is sent ahead to that country so that the president always has a familiar set of vehicles around him.
The Beast along with other Secret Service vehicles are packed aboard a military transport plane and then sent off to the appropriate destinations by the US military.
There is one SUV in the presidential motorcade that sports a six-barreled Gatling Gun out of the roof. This gun can fire thousands of rounds per minute and is just nonchalantly hanging out of the roof of an SUV.
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