"Midnight Hammer" shocked the world: US air strikes on Iran demonstrate strong military strength

In June 2025, the United States and Israel launched a precision military strike codenamed " Operation Midnight Hammer " targeting Iran's three core nuclear facilities. This action not only caused a geopolitical shock, but also demonstrated the United States' most complex and powerful air strike capability in the world at the tactical level .

From the 18-hour long-range B-2 stealth bomber, to the first actual combat delivery of the "blockbuster bomb" GBU-57, to the coordinated "deception tactics" across multiple bands, platforms, and global theaters, this operation was a pinnacle demonstration of modern air strike tactics.

🎯 Operation Overview: Three locations attacked simultaneously, completed in one night

☑️ Target:

1. Fordow – a uranium enrichment facility deep underground, Iran’s most secure nuclear target;

2. Natanz – centrifuge enrichment site;

3. Isfahan – Research and storage complex.

🛫 Put your strength into:

• 7 B‑2 Spirit stealth bombers , each flying 18 hours;

• Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched from submarines based in the Arabian Sea;

• The decoy fleet is executed synchronously with the "deception track";

• More than 125 U.S. military combat aircraft participated in the entire process;

• A total of 75 precision-guided munitions hit the three major targets.

🔍 Core weapon analysis: The US Air Force's killer weapon is here

1. B‑2 Spirit Stealth Bomber

• The world's only all-weather stealth strategic bomber ;

• Able to penetrate deep into enemy airspace without being detected, suitable for striking “first wave targets”;

• Each carries two GBU‑57 heavy bombs that can penetrate concrete up to 18 meters thick.

⚙️The flight time of this mission: 18 hours, with multiple aerial refuelings throughout the journey.

2. GBU‑57 MOP（Massive Ordnance Penetrator）

• The world's largest earth-penetrating bomb (13 tons);

• Able to penetrate 18 meters of concrete/60 meters of soil before exploding;

• The first actual combat application was in this airstrike, the strike on Fordow;

• Owned only by the United States, it symbolizes the "Bunker Terminator".

3. Tomahawk Block IV

• Launched covertly from submarines, the range is 1,600 kilometers;

• Capable of low-altitude penetration and precision strike outside the defense zone;

• This time, targets in Isfahan were struck directly from the Arabian Sea, with coordinated air raids being carried out simultaneously.

🧠 Tactical sophistication: deception and surprise attack

This airstrike did not rely solely on hardware firepower, but also included extremely intelligent tactical design:

• Westward Decoy Route : The Pentagon deliberately released news that the B‑2 was heading to Guam to mislead the global media to focus on the Pacific Ocean;

• Eastern Raid Route : The actual strike route crossed the Atlantic Ocean, completely avoiding Iranian reconnaissance;

• Stealth flight without communication : The bomber flew silently throughout the entire flight and did not appear on any flight path monitoring platform;

• Coordinated multi-band operations : Air Force and Navy, decoys and real aircraft, electronic jamming and physical raids;

• The closed-loop execution of "suppression-breakthrough-strike-disengagement" took only 25 minutes to complete the strike and return.

📉 Result evaluation: Tactical success ≠ strategic decisiveness?

Results:

• All three nuclear targets were damaged, especially in the central areas of Fordow and Natanz;

• There were no American casualties;

• Iran’s air defenses did not respond effectively;

• Demonstrate the United States' global rapid strike capability and send a strong strategic signal to the outside world.

Still to be seen:

• The actual extent of the damage to the nuclear facilities is not entirely clear;

• Whether Iran still retains nuclear research and development capabilities;

• whether the action will stimulate a nuclear arms race or escalate conflict in the Middle East ;

• Russia warns: The risk of nuclear proliferation is increasing and some countries may assist Iran.

A satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows damage at the Fordo enrichment facility in Iran after the U.S. strikes

🧭 Blogger's comment: Behind a military textbook-level operation

"Operation Midnight Hammer" is not only a targeted destruction of Iran's nuclear facilities, but also an all-round "muscle show" by the United States to demonstrate its global strike capability, intelligence integration and tactical coordination.

It clearly illustrates several facts:

• 🛡️The future war trend where stealth air force dominates the first wave of raids ;

• 🔄Modern warfare relies more on intelligence, deception, rhythm and precision than pure firepower;

• ⚖️A single tactical success is unlikely to resolve the structural contradictions of nuclear proliferation .

Like some classic air raids during the Cold War, this operation will be written into future military academy textbooks, but the political and security consequences it has caused may have just begun.

📌What do you think? Does the United States have the ability to completely destroy Iran's nuclear program? Will this start a new round of regional nuclear competition? Welcome to leave a message in the comment area to discuss.