“I think it was a magnificent show of capability of the B-2, literally going undetected, striking targets and returning home. Iran never saw them coming. There wasn’t one shot fired from Iran and they were extraordinarily effective putting bombs on target,” said retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard “Dick” Newton III.

During Operation Midnight Hammer, the B-2s dropped GBU-57 bunker buster bombs, a 30,000-pound weapon, on Iran’s nuclear sites. It was the first time the U.S. military used the bunker buster bombs in combat and the largest B-2 strike mission in the history of the aircraft.

Newton, who lives in the Palm Beach area in Florida, was commander of the Air Force’s first B-2 squadron in the mid-’90s. Besides B-2 and B-52 command assignments during his Air Force career, he also commanded a B-1B operations group. He is a command pilot with more than 2,900 flying hours in aircraft, including the B-2, B-52 and B-1.

“The men and women of the 509th Bomb Wing (at Whiteman AFB, Missouri) – the maintainers, weapons folks, support folks and aircrews – are magnificent,” he said.

Richard Newton

“In my experience, they’re similarly magnificent with the 5th Bomb Wing. I had the privilege to have commanded the 5th Bomb Wing ‘Warbirds,'” he said. Newton, who was commander of the Minot bomb wing from February 2000-December 2001, said he has many fond memories of his time at Minot AFB.

Newton said he wasn’t surprised the B-2 was used for the mission to Iran. He said there have been existing plans to strike Iran for years.

“However, conditions change – geopolitical conditions change – but nonetheless, I think we really ended up just doing an extraordinary job from the operational security of the mission to the preparation, the planning, the training and then the actual execution to fly that 38-hour round robin mission from Whiteman Air Force Base in central Missouri to Iran to strike very difficult targets with absolutely pinpoint accuracy and then returning to their base in Missouri is remarkable,” he said.

He said what is also remarkable was the synchronization in integration of the more than 125 U.S. aircraft plus the Tomahawk missiles launched by U.S. Navy submarines that were integral in carrying out the mission.

“It was astounding – not outstanding but astounding,” he said.

Submitted Photo A U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit is recovered at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, after supporting Operation Midnight Hammer. Photo courtesy of 509th Bomb Wing, Whiteman AFB.

“They never saw them coming and they never even saw them leave,” he continued. “All they knew is they got three of their key nuclear weapons development facilities significantly damaged.”

The mission was kept a secret, according to reports.

“In my experience having served on the Joint Chiefs of Staff twice, I greatly appreciate how effective our operational security can be. So. frankly, it was not a surprise to me that we kept this mission for months, leading into weeks, leading into days and actually leading into hours under wraps. I’ve been there, done that and that continues on to this day, and that really speaks to leadership in the Pentagon all the way down to the maintenance crews,” Newton said.

Submitted Photo A U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit lands at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, after supporting Operation Midnight Hammer. Photo courtesy of 509th Bomb Wing, Whiteman AFB.