It was a historic first. A trifecta of American strategic bombers doing a flyover of Super Bowl LV at the precise moment the National Anthem ended. It only lasted a few seconds, but the cheers of the limited number of fans in attendance were noticeably loud.

But the fans would be even more impressed if they knew how much work and advanced planning goes into something like this. And even more so if they considered the quiet message this flyover sent to our potential adversaries around the world.

According to the Air Force, a trifecta flyover like this has been desired for years. But you can’t just dial up three different strategic bombers from three different bases and expect them to just appear at a precise moment over a precise location. So complex is the trifecta that it had been shelved for years.

If we wanted to fly a B1B Lancer, B-2 Spirit, and B-52 Stratofortress together in formation at low speed and altitude and over a target at a precise moment, what would it take? Well, quite a lot.