In 2025, U.S. B-2 Spirit stealth bombers played a central role in one of the most significant strategic air operations of the year: Operation Midnight Hammer, a precision strike against Iran’s heavily fortified nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. In June, multiple B-2s flew long-range missions from Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, releasing GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators, 30,000-pound “bunker-buster” bombs designed to penetrate deeply buried infrastructure before detonation. Fourteen of these weapons were used, marking the first combat employment of the MOP and the largest-ever B-2 operational strike.
The GBU-57, exclusively carried by the B-2, is engineered to burrow through tens of meters of earth or reinforced concrete—up to about 60 meters underground—before exploding, a capability intended to defeat targets once thought unreachable by conventional munitions.
This mission underscored U.S. long-range strike capability and stealth penetration, showing how advanced bombers can operate deep into defended airspace without detection. It also sent a strategic message to Iran and global observers that deeply hardened facilities are not invulnerable to precision approaches—shifting deterrence dynamics and military planning amid broader Middle East tensions.
