Operation Midnight Hammer | F-35 & E-7 Buys Cut

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The latest episode is Bro Chat 18.0….after a six-month hiatus….let’s blame “Vader” since he probably won’t read this.

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FLIGHT LINE

🎯 Operation Midnight Hammer: U.S. B-2s Strike Iranian Nuclear Sites
In a major show of force, the United States executed Operation Midnight Hammer, a coordinated, multi-domain strike targeting three Iranian nuclear facilities. According to General Dan Caine, the mission was ordered by the President and conducted under U.S. Central Command with support from six other combatant commands.

Seven B-2 Spirit bombers flew 34 hours from the U.S., supported by aerial refueling, ISR assets, and deception tactics, including decoy aircraft and a fake B-2 package sent westward into the Pacific. Simultaneously, a U.S. Navy submarine launched more than two dozen Tomahawk cruise missiles targeting Iranian infrastructure near Esfahan. The Tomahawk cruise missiles struck after the B-2’s hit their targets to ensure the element of surprise remained intact.

At approximately 2:10 a.m. Iran time, the lead B-2 dropped the first of fourteen 30,000-lb GBU-57 MOPs (Massive Ordnance Penetrators) on hardened nuclear facilities. The entire strike window lasted roughly 25 minutes, with over 75 precision-guided munitions used and no U.S. aircraft detected or engaged. Iranian air defenses never fired.

This marked the largest B-2 operational strike in U.S. history, involving 125+ aircraft, and served as a demonstration of deep-penetration strike capabilities, joint command coordination, and operational security. Damage assessments suggest severe degradation of Iranian nuclear infrastructure.

Hot Take: This mission battled serious operational security (OPSEC) challenges from the start. For days, the global media cycle buzzed with speculation: Would the U.S. strike Iran? In today’s world, many military aircraft are easily tracked using open-source tools like Flightradar24.

When four tankers were spotted over Whiteman AFB, Missouri (home of the B-2), then tracked out over the Pacific, open-source analysts quickly flagged the move. But that wasn’t the real strike. It was a decoy.

Operation Midnight Hammer showed that the U.S. didn't just survive the digital age; it used it to its advantage. Massive tanker launches, diversion flights, and ISR saturation created enough "noise" to mask the real hammer headed east.

It's still unclear whether all the aircraft sent in advance had a secondary mission or were launched strictly for deception. What is clear is that this strike used the noise of the modern world to hide in plain sight.

General Caine’s Press Briefing

🎯 U.S. Chops Critical E-7 Wedgetail Radar Program
The U.S. Air Force has canceled five of the planned 26 E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft, a key system once expected to replace the aging E-3 Sentry fleet. The decision, reported by Breaking Defense, comes just as China expands its stealth capabilities with platforms like the J-20 and FC-31. The E-7 uses a MESA radar (Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array) mounted on a dorsal fin to track airborne targets across a wide field of view—ideal for detecting low-observable threats. The Pentagon now calls the platform “non-survivable” in future combat and is shifting focus toward space-based radar and ISR solutions. (more)

🎯 Pentagon Plan Slashes F-35 Orders in Half for FY2026
The Pentagon’s new spending proposal cuts the U.S. Air Force’s F-35A procurement for fiscal year 2026 from 44 jets to just 24. Budget documents cite delays in the TR-3 upgrade and Block 4 capabilities as major factors. The pause reflects broader frustration over software integration challenges and cost overruns, even as the Air Force remains committed to the long-term fleet. Lockheed Martin has said TR-3 jets won’t be fully combat-capable until 2025 or later, delaying deliveries of hundreds of jets across multiple services. (more)

THREAT OF THE DAY (TOD)…via Wikipedia

Threat: GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator
Country of Origin: United States
Initial Operational Capability: 2011

The GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) is the United States Air Force’s most powerful non-nuclear bunker-buster bomb, designed specifically to destroy deeply buried and heavily fortified underground facilities. Weighing approximately 30,000 pounds (13,600 kg) and measuring about 20.5 feet (6.2 m) in length, the bomb features a dense, high-strength steel alloy casing engineered to survive extreme impact forces and penetrate up to 60 meters (200 feet) of earth or up to 18 meters (59 feet) of reinforced concrete before detonating its 2,000+ kg high-explosive warhead composed of advanced explosives like AFX-757 and PBXN-114.

Guided by a dual GPS/Inertial Navigation System (INS), the GBU-57 achieves precision targeting within meters of its intended point, aided by aerodynamic winglets and lattice tail fins for stable flight and mid-course corrections. Its Large Penetrator Smart Fuze (LPSF) adjusts detonation timing based on penetration depth and underground structure, maximizing internal damage to hardened targets

Operationally, the GBU-57 can only be carried by the stealthy B-2 Spirit bomber (has been tested with the B-52), which can carry two bombs internally, ensuring a low radar signature during strategic strikes. The B-21 Raider is expected to carry the weapon in the future.

The GBU-57’s first confirmed combat use was on June 22, 2025, during "Operation Midnight Hammer," when U.S. B-2 bombers dropped 14 of these bombs on three key Iranian nuclear sites: Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan. Fordo, located roughly 90 meters underground inside a mountain, had previously resisted Israeli strikes due to its depth and fortification. The MOP’s deployment marked a significant escalation, demonstrating its unique capability to penetrate and severely damage such deeply buried nuclear enrichment facilities. Preliminary assessments described the damage as "extremely severe," though the full extent remains classified.

This weapon’s ability to breach deeply buried, hardened targets makes it a critical asset for neutralizing underground command centers, nuclear facilities, and weapons storage sites that are otherwise impervious to conventional munitions. However, its use also raises concerns about potential radioactive contamination when striking nuclear-related facilities42.

In summary, the GBU-57 MOP combines massive kinetic energy penetration, precision guidance, and a powerful warhead to deliver unparalleled destructive capability against the most fortified underground targets, as proven by its historic first use in the 2025 strikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

More on the GBU-57:

Citation List: GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator

1. U.S. Air Force Fact Sheet: GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP).
   https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/104537/gbu-57-massive-ordnance-penetrator-mop/

2. "The Massive Ordnance Penetrator: America’s Deepest Bunker Buster," Defense Update, March 2024.
   https://defense-update.com/202403/mop-deep-penetrator.html

3. Freedberg, Sydney J. Jr. “B-2 Drops Massive Ordnance Penetrator On Iran Nuclear Sites,” Breaking Defense, June 2025.
   https://breakingdefense.com/2025/06/b-2-drops-mop-on-iran-nuclear-sites/

4. Sweetman, Bill. “GBU-57 MOP: The Monster Bomb,” Aviation Week & Space Technology, July 2023.
   https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/gbu-57-mop-monster-bomb

5. “B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber,” U.S. Air Force Official Website.
   https://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/104485/b-2-spirit/