B-2 stealth bomber: Earlier this month the United States decimated Iranian nuclear sites as they used the B-2 stealth bombers to drop the massive 30000lbs (13.6 tonne) GBU-57 Massive Ordinance Penetrator (MOP) aka the bunker buster bombs on Isfahan Natanz and Fordow nuclear facilities which purportedly completely obliterated these locations according to US President Donald Trump.
The US use of the B-2 stealth bomber in Iran has become a hot topic of discussion among global strategic circles and has sparked panic among Washingtons rivals including China who have been stunned at the destructive effectiveness of the sixth-generation bomber jet especially its ability to fly long distances.
Chinese experts in awe of B-2 stealth bomber
The B-2s performance has impressed Chinese experts who are now calling upon Beijing to develop a similar bomber jet to maintain strategic parity with the United States. According to Song Zhongping a military analyst and former instructor in Chinas Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) nothing not even a latest 6th-generation fighter jet can replace strategic bomber even in an era where long-range attack missiles exist South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported.
Zhongping notes that strategic bombers have the capability to carry both nuclear and conventional attack which makes it strategic weapon that could turn the tide in favor of any army.
How B-2 stealth bomber destroyed Iranian nuclear sites
On June 22 the US military launched Operation Midnight Hammer under which seven B-2 stealth bombers breached Iranian airspace and dropped its heavy GBU-57 bunker busting bombs on the countrys top nuclear facilities including Natanz Isfahan and Fordow. The bomber took off from the Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri and flew for nearly 37 hours taking the trans-Atlantic route via the Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea and entered Irans airspace from the west or southwest.
This was the the longest mission for the B-2 bomber since 2001.
After bombing Iranian nuclear facilities with impunity the B-2 stealth bomber fleet left the Iranian airspace and returned without any resistance a feat that has stunned Chinese experts who now believe that strategic bombers are very important for the Chinese army due to their utility in attacking anywhere in the world and establishing nuclear deterrence.
What makes the B-2 stealth bomber special?
The Northrop B-2 Spirit commonly known as the B-2 stealth bomber is a heavy strategic bomber with low-observable stealth technology designed to evade dense anti-aircraft defenses. The B-2 bomber has a special radar-absorbent coating on its body which absorbs radar signals and prevent them bouncing off the aircraft significantly reducing detection chances by enemy radars.
This unique technology also increases the B-2s speed and its sleek body is designed in manner that drastically reduces the planes radar cross-section.
The B-2 stealth bomber is especially designed to carry heavy bombs including the GBU-57 bunker buster which it reportedly dropped on Irans underground Fordow nuclear site during Sundays attack. The heavy bomber can also carry nuclear bombs.
Additionally the B-2 has a range of more than 10000 kilometers making it capable of carrying out intercontinental strikes.
China is currently flight-testing two different sixth-generation aircraft the J-36 and J-50 however even the most advanced 6th-gen stealth fighters are no match for a strategic bomber due its long-flight capability and the sheer volume of explosives it can carry as per analysts.