By Pat Kelly.
Medically speaking, President Barack Obama left nothing to chance during his whirlwind visit yesterday, with a hand-picked team of doctors, surgeons, medics and nurses among his entourage.
As the dust settles on the visit and Dublin slowly returns to normality, it has emerged that aside from the fleet of Irish ambulances that trailed his motorcade, Obama brought along six doctors and a supply of his own blood type, AB. The Presidential ambulance was itself a reinforced vehicle, capable of withstanding a variety of terrorist attacks.
For obvious reasons, its precise protective qualities are a closely-guarded secret, however details are emerging that shed light on ‘The Beast’, the President’s highly-armoured Cadillac limousine.
The number plate of The Beast
In an effort to protect the President from bacterial as well as military attacks, The Beast is said to have its own independent, in-car oxygen supply and the petrol tank is filled with a special foam, which prevents it exploding, even in the event of a direct hit from a rocket-propelled grenade.
The doors weigh the equivalent of an aircraft cabin door and are eight inches thick, while the Kevlar-reinforced tyres contain a steel rim, enabling the President to make a speedy getaway, even if the tyres themselves blow out.
Needless to say, the windows can withstand armour-piercing bullets and the only window that actually opens is the one beside the CIA-trained driver – and even then only by three inches, to allow him to converse with a secret service agent. Containers with the President’s blood type are also carried aboard in case he needs an emergency transfusion and the trunk contains its own in-built fire-fighting system.
However all this protective baggage comes at a cost – even with a 4.5 litre diesel engine, The Beast is said to have a maximum speed of only 60mph and does an average of between 6 and 8 miles per gallon. The exact cost of The Beast is unknown but in a typically Irish twist to the tale, a design flaw was exposed when the almost invincible, multi-million euro behemoth became stuck on a steep ramp at the US Embassy in Dublin.
pat.kelly@imt.ie
About Pat Kelly
Loading ...
