22 June 2025
Last weeks bombing of nuclear enrichment facilities in Iran served as a reminder to Rejigit that if all of the global funding of warfare and pointless posturing and the manufacture of munitions were to be redirected to addressing the many problems confronting mankind, what a way better planet Mother Earth would be.
That said, some of the minutiae of the military gear used last week is interesting;
Twenty one B-2 Spirit stealth bomber aircraft were built by Northrop Grumman Corporation 1989 – 2000. The commissioned cost was US$2.13b (estimated US$3.5 billion – US$4.0 billion in 2025 terms) per aircraft.
The power pack comprises four General Electric F118-GE-100 turbofans, each with 17,300 lbs. of thrust. They have a range of 6,600km un-refuelled and 11,112km subject to refuelling.
Top speed is 1010km/h and a payload capacity of 18,144kg. Maximum gross takeoff weight is 152,633kg. Wingspan 52.4 meters, Length 21 meters, Height 5.18 meters.
On or about 16th June Donald Trump indicated he would decide within two weeks what to do about the potential nuclear capability threat posed by Iran. It probably took Iran's rulers by surprise when it was bombs away only days later. Trump’s weird rational will keep them guessing in future.
Operation “Midnight Hammer” got underway with seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers setting off on a eighteen hour flight east > destination Iran.
Each B-2 Spirit aircraft dropped two GBU-57 series MOP (Massive Ordnance Penetrator) bombs, six of which were dropped on the Fordo site. Each unit is a 30,000 pound (13,607 kg), 6.25m long, 0.8m dia, precision-guided munition bunker buster bomb which can penetrate ground (including rock and strengthened concrete) to a depth of sixty meters before exploding. Their targets were Iranian nuclear facilities at Fordow and Natanz. If the Fordo site is kosher, it begs the question; why has it been built 80 - 90 meters underground?
Additionally, two dozen Cruise missiles were launched from a U.S. submarine and targeted a third nuclear facility at Esfahan.
Donald Trump has declared that he is currently undecided about whether he will order the assassination of Iran’s 86 year old Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei. Another guessing game.
