American B-52 \u201cStratofortresses\u201d have now been confirmed to be operating in Iran as part of \u201cOperation Epic Fury.\u201d A major escalation in the war, this signals that the US has sufficient air superiority to commit these assets without fear of loss. <\/p>\n
It also suggests that the US believes Iran\u2019s air defenses are sufficiently degraded to allow these large bombers to operate freely. First flown in 1955, the B-52 is one of the US\u2019s longest-serving aircraft.<\/p>\n
Effectively enormous flying bomb \u201ctrucks,\u201d B-52s are generally used to support massive offensives and can level infrastructure at scale. Historically, they were used extensively in conflicts such as the Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan, and the Iraq War. <\/p>\n
B-52s<\/a> can also be used to provide close air support for ground troops by acting as enormous loitering munition silos able to drop precision bombs where needed. They are also an effective psychological warfare device given their size and power.<\/p>\n B-52s over Iran<\/p>\n But they are generally considered vulnerable to modern air defenses and fighters, especially since they are huge and non-stealthy. If Iran\u2019s defenses were still functional, the bombers would be very vulnerable to attack.<\/p>\n The presence of these bombers over Iran also likely means the conflict has entered a new phase. Typically speaking, modern wars tend to consist of various distinct phases, the first of which tends to be to blind the enemy. <\/p>\n This phase tends to see things like stealth fighters, electronic warfare (EW) assets (like the EA-18G \u201cGrowler\u201d), cyber attacks, and cruise missile attacks deployed to knock out things like radar, command centers, and surface-to-air missile systems.<\/p>\n The second phase typically involves the use of aircraft to acquire air superiority. This phase will see non-stealth fighters and drones deployed to intercept enemy aircraft and pick off remaining defensive systems where required.<\/p>\n