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Thread: US B-2 bombers strike Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen

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    US B-2 bombers strike Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen

    About time!

    The US carried out a round of strikes in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthis on Wednesday evening, according to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, targeting five underground weapons storage facilities using B-2 stealth bombers.

    The facilities housed advanced conventional weapons used to target military and civilian vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, three US defense officials told CNN following the attack.

    “This was a unique demonstration of the United States’ ability to target facilities that our adversaries seek to keep out of reach, no matter how deeply buried underground, hardened, or fortified,” Austin said in a statement. “The employment of US Air Force B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers demonstrates U.S. global strike capabilities to take action against these targets when necessary, anytime, anywhere.”
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

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    Excellent news!......Ben
    The future is forged on the anvil of history...The interpreter of history wields the hammer... - Unknown author...

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    It's an amazing machine that has been flying for 35 years now. They're unmistakable when flying. I've seen them come in for landings at Nellis AFB outside of Las Vegas. Checking them out, due to this thread, there are videos of them landing and taking off from aircraft carriers - something I did not know they can do.

    Hunter
    Last edited by UTAH; 10-17-2024 at 11:48 AM.
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

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    I have not read this anywhere but I suspect they might have come out of Diego Garcia, the largest island of the Chagos Archipelago, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). We have both B-2s and B-52s stationed there. My SIL was there twice during the Iraq wars. Prior to that I had never even heard of Diego Garcia.

    I bet them houthis boys thought they had just been hit by the biggest drone ever

    I think we were playing around with little pin pricks too long----big bangs just might help them houthis seek a better way to Jannah.
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

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    Quote Originally Posted by UTAH View Post
    Checking them out, due to this thread, there are videos of them landing and taking off from aircraft carriers - something I did not know they can do.
    Hunter, I believe you'll find those videos were generated from video games...Land based jet aircraft do not have the reinforced landing gear or tailhooks which would allow them to reduce their landing speeds enough to be safely recovered on an aircraft carrier befor they dropped off the bow...Their landing gear is also not robust enough to withstand a catapult launch...

    The most famous instance of carrier launched bombers was the Doolittle Raid against Japan in 1942, and has inspired the imaginations of many...The Navy also successfully tested a specially modified C-130 for use to resupply aircraft carrier groups at sea, but the idea was eventually dropped...Multi-branch aircraft such as the McDonnell-Douglas F-4 was designed to withstand carrier service, and was used widely by Air Force, Navy and Marine units as fighters, bombers, interceptors and aldo recon & ground support aircraft......Ben

    The future is forged on the anvil of history...The interpreter of history wields the hammer... - Unknown author...

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    Dave the fate of our USAF and Navy presence on Diego Garcia is still undecided...Multiple nations want us out of there, even though it is vital to the interests of world peace...I do hope our long-standing agreement with the Republic of Mauritius can continue...I believe our leaving there could be catastrophic to security for several nations...During the MidEast conflicts much of the bombing of Iraq took place from there due to the cowardly and ever squeamish french preventing overflights of their precious wine vineyards...Diego Garcia was so crowded B-52's had to wait in a queue to land until another took off......Ben
    The future is forged on the anvil of history...The interpreter of history wields the hammer... - Unknown author...

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    I appreciate the assist, Ben.

    The respect for our history and of our soldiers is what matters, my friends.

    I was in a "peace time" military - which means we trained continuously so that when called up we were always ready.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

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    Wikipedia does a decent job in defining the political status of Diego Garcia---which is actually on a 99 year lease from Mauritius:

    On 23 June 2017, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted in favour of referring the territorial dispute between Mauritius and the UK to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in order to clarify the legal status of the Chagos Islands archipelago in the Indian Ocean. The motion was approved by a majority vote with 94 voting for and 15 against.[37][38]

    In February 2019, the ICJ in The Hague ruled that the United Kingdom must transfer the islands to Mauritius as they were not legally separated from the latter in 1965. The UK Foreign Office said the ruling is not legally binding.[39] In May 2019, the United Nations General Assembly affirmed the decision of the International Court of Justice and demanded that the United Kingdom withdraw its colonial administration from the Islands and cooperate with Mauritius to facilitate the resettlement of Mauritian nationals in the archipelago.[40][41] In a written statement, the U.S. government said that neither the Americans nor the British have any plans to discontinue use of the military base on Diego Garcia. The statement said in a footnote: "In 2016, there were discussions between the United Kingdom and the United States concerning the continuing importance of the joint base. Neither party gave notice to terminate and the agreement remains in force until 2036".[42][7]

    In June 2020, a Mauritian official offered to allow the United States to retain its military base on the island if Mauritius succeeded in regaining sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago.[43]

    Chagos Marine Protected Area
    On 1 April 2010, the Chagos Marine Protected Area (MPA) was declared to cover the waters around the Chagos Archipelago. However, Mauritius objected, stating this was contrary to its legal rights, and on 18 March 2015, in light of the Mauritius v. United Kingdom case, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that the Chagos Marine Protected Area was illegal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as Mauritius had legally binding rights to fish in the waters surrounding the Chagos Archipelago, to an eventual return of the Chagos Archipelago, and to the preservation of any minerals or oil discovered in or near the Chagos Archipelago prior to its return.[44][45]

    Hand over of the island to Mauritius
    On 3 October 2024, the UK prime minister Keir Starmer announced in a statement with the Mauritian prime minister Pravind Jugnauth that the UK will hand over the Chagos islands to Mauritius. The joint base on the island will stay, with the UK initially taking a 99 year lease of the base from Mauritius. Mauritius will be allowed to begin resettlement on the Chagos Archipelago, but not on Diego Garcia due to the sensitive nature of the base. US president Joe Biden welcomed the agreement, saying that it was a "clear demonstration that through diplomacy and partnership, countries can overcome long-standing historical challenges to reach peaceful and mutually beneficial outcomes".[3]
    When my SIL went there I think he was at Barksdale. They went as a unit---complete with a stash of spare parts and I believe ground crews. If I recall correctly they went non-stop from Barksdale with refueling in the air.
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

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    Quote Originally Posted by UTAH View Post
    It's an amazing machine that has been flying for 35 years now. They're unmistakable when flying. I've seen them come in for landings at Nellis AFB outside of Las Vegas. Checking them out, due to this thread, there are videos of them landing and taking off from aircraft carriers - something I did not know they can do.

    Hunter
    look closely at those videos. They are AI generated. The Carriers are stationary not moving forward at speed which even our best high powered fighters require and B2's are not powerful enough to launch with out a catapult and the landing gear is not engineered to take the impact of a carrier landing nor do they have arresting hooks. My friend Gil commanded a B2 Squadron
    "The only thing that we learn from torture is the depths of our own moral depravity"

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    Ben, I'm trying to understand why the B-52 cannot deliver the GBU-57 but the B-2 can. I have to think it is a limitation of the bomb bay doors. Is that the case. My SIL is in Denver for his annual training so I can't ask him. Also, he was always tight lipped about what kind of ordinance he was "sharing" with the ISIS crowd in Iraq.

    My other thought is: how many types of planes do you need to deliver such a bomb
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

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    Dave, the door size could very well be the limiting factor, but bear in mind the B-2 is the only acknowledged aircraft with that capability...The Pentagon is known for not showing all their cards at once...I also recall when the GBU-57 was still undergoing tests, they were dropped from the rear cargo deck of a C-130 being pulled out the back inflight by rather large drogue parachutes, then remotely detached from the chutes to free fall to targets...But a C-130 is nowhere near as stealthy as a B-2......Ben
    The future is forged on the anvil of history...The interpreter of history wields the hammer... - Unknown author...

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    Thank you sir----and I do remember the C-130 videos
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

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    Quote Originally Posted by TriGuy View Post
    They are AI generated.
    Yep. As with Ben, a good call.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

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