125 Jets, B-2 Bombers And A Decoy Plan: Inside US 'Operation Midnight Hammer' On Iran

Last Updated:June 22, 2025, 18:52 IST

Operation Midnight Hammer, which involved 125 aircraft and several B-2 bombers, also included a deception plan that likely gave the US Army a strategic advantage against Iran

US used 125 jets and several B-2 bombers to strike Iran's nuclear facility on Sunday | Reuters Image

Operation Midnight Hammer: The world witnessed US intervention in the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict on Sunday, as strikes were carried out on Tehran’s key nuclear sites under the codename ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’.

But the operation, which involved 125 aircraft and several B-2 bombers, also included a deception plan that likely gave the US Army a strategic advantage during its strikes on Iran.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, said the American forces used several B-2 Spirit stealth bombers during the operation to destroy Iran’s buried network of nuclear research facilities.

“At midnight Friday into Saturday morning, a large B2 strike package comprised of bombers launched from the continental US," he said during a press briefing at the White House. 

How US Deceived Iranian Intelligence

Caine said that, to maintain a tactical surprise, part of the main strike package was directed westward into the Pacific as a “decoy"—a deception effort known only to an “extremely small number of planners and key leaders in Washington and in Tampa."

Here’s a detailed explanation of Washington’s “decoy" plan against Iran: 

Deception Strategy: A portion of the strike package was directed westward into the Pacific Ocean as a decoy, creating the illusion of a different operational focus. This move helped preserve tactical surprise.

Strict Secrecy: The deception plan was known only to an extremely small number of planners and key leaders based in Washington and Tampa, according to Caine.

Main Package Movement: While the decoy headed west, the actual strike force—seven B-2 Spirit bombers, each with two crew members—quietly proceeded eastward with minimal communications to avoid detection.

Extended Flight Operations: The B-2 bombers undertook an 18-hour flight to the target area, completing multiple in-flight refuellings en route.

Final Approach and Coordination: Upon entering Iranian airspace, the B-2s linked up with escort and support aircraft in a precisely timed and complex manoeuvre, requiring exact synchronisation across multiple platforms in a narrow corridor of airspace.

Further detailing the operation, Caine noted that this level of tight integration with minimal communication highlights the “unmatched coordination capabilities of the U.S. joint force."

He said the operation was designed to degrade and destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons infrastructure. “It was planned and executed across multiple domains and theatres with coordination that reflects our ability to project power globally with speed and precision at the time and place of our nation’s choosing."

“This was a highly classified mission with very few people in Washington knowing the timing or nature of this plan," he added.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth called Washington’s ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’ against Iran an “overwhelming success", adding that they “devastated" Iranian nuclear facilities at multiple locations.

United States of America (USA)

News world 125 Jets, B-2 Bombers And A Decoy Plan: Inside US 'Operation Midnight Hammer' On Iran