How the U.S. Air Force Plans to Attack Iran—and Why It Might Not Want To

Topic: AircraftBlog Brand: The BuzzRegion: Middle EastTags: Air Defense, B-2 Spirit, E/A-18G Growler, Iran, and U.S. Air ForceHow the U.

S. Air Force Plans to Attack Iran—and Why It Might Not Want To April 24, 2025By: Brandon J. WeichertShareShare this link on FacebookShare this page on X (Twitter)Share this link on LinkedInEmail a link to this pageThere is a possibility that a strike on Iran will not be as much of a slam-dunk as everyone thinks it will.



Any U.S.-led airstrike against suspected nuclear weapons facilities in Iran will involve a fleet of warplanes and bombers.

So far, most of the discourse surrounding such a strike has focused on the B-2 Spirit long-range stealth bombers that have been redeployed to Diego Garcia in the northern Indian Ocean. What few realize is that accompanying the B-2s will be E/A-18G Growlers, F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets, and KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft—designed to refuel the B-2s just before they commence their attack run. How an American Airstrike on Iran Would GoLet us envision a hypothetical strike on Iran launched by the U.

S. Air Force. As the B-2s depart from Diego Garcia and approach Iran, the Growlers and Super Hornets will deploy from nearby aircraft carriers and rendezvous with the Stratotanker in friendly territory just outside Iran, with the B-2s emanating from Diego Garcia.

The KC-135s will then conduct aerial refueling on the B-2s, filling their tanks before the planes reach Iran.Then the E/A-18G Growlers will jet out ahead of the B-2s—seeking to create a pathway through Iran’s cluttered air defense zones using their planes’ advanced electronic warfare (EW) suites. The Growlers will engage in what’s known as SEAD, or “Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses.

” The F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets accompanying the Growlers will then assist in the Destruction of Enemy Air Defenses (DEAD).How will this work?Growlers will use their EW suite to flood a ring of frequencies that the Iranian military relies upon to coordinate their defense. These capabilities will stymie the less advanced systems the Iranian MiG-29s and aging F-14 Tomcats that will inevitably be deployed by the Islamic Republic to intercept the high-flying B-2s.

Protection of the B-2s would then fall to the aforementioned Super Hornets, which would be called into dogfight with whatever planes the Iranians scrambled to intercept the American planes entering their airspace.The F/A-18s would further be guided by E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control (AWACS) planes operating safely over-the-horizon, providing real-time, enhanced surveillance and coordination of the airspace. Just this week, one of these planes was deployed by the Trump administration to the Middle East—a clear sign to the capitals of the Middle East, as everyone understands that these birds being deployed can only mean the Americans are readying to strike.

Super Hornets and Growlers will both punch an opening in the protective envelope around Iranian targets and disrupt any defense. Then the alien-like black triangles that are the B-2s will calmly jog westward, after entering the southern area of the country. Iranian air defenses, while technically outmatched by American stealth power, should not be underestimated—especially since the strongest among the Iranian systems are Russian in origin.

The Russians have for years claimed that their air defenses, notably the S-400 and S-500, can locate and destroy American stealth planes. In fact, some Russian analysts assert that even the S-300 can do this.This means that the Growlers with their SEAD capabilities will be key.

If those Growlers are not around, the chances increase that Iran will be able to get off a lucky shot that takes down one or more B-2s.What Did Israel’s October Airstrikes Against Iran Really Achieve?In October 2024, Israel launched a massive airstrike deep inside Iran. Like the Americans, they relied heavily on SEAD in order to counter Tehran’s air defenses, and destroyed at least six S-300s during the strike with no aerial losses.

After that, the Israeli warplanes returned home, with Israel asserting that they had “escalation dominance.”Yet, a real question on the minds of many analysts has been: what was the point of that strike? Initially, it looked as though the IAF had planned a much larger strike in October of last year. But, after they blasted the Russian S-300 and a handful of other Iranian military sites, the follow-on did not occur.

Why not? And if the Israeli airstrike wasn’t as successful as believed at the time, the next query is: why wasn’t it as successful? Did the SEAD planes not do their job?These questions must be answered by American policymakers before they decide to execute what appears to be a likely joint U.S.-Israeli airstrike against Iranian targets.

Something may have spooked the otherwise potent IAF planes from following through on their attacks against Iranian targets in October—even after they had employed SEAD capabilities. Will the Americans, who use similar technology, encounter the same complications? Keep in mind that America has only 19 B-2 long-range stealth bombers in its fleet. As many as six—more than one-third of its entire arsenal—are now deployed to Diego Garcia.

If the Trump administration decides to execute a strike on Iran, these systems will be its spearhead. But if Iran’s air defenses are more advanced and comprehensive than intelligence suggests, then the United States risks losing at least some of its vaunted B-2s. By the way, there are no replacements for these systems.

Northrop Grumman, which built them, shuttered the production line years ago. They have no replacement until the B-21 Raider comes online.More importantly, America’s B-2s are needed to deter China—and greater U.

S. involvement in a Middle East war will deprive its capacity to stop a Chinese assault on Taiwan.The Real Cost of War with IranAll this is to say that there is a possibility that a strike on Iran will not be as much of a slam-dunk as everyone thinks it will.

Of course, in the specific case of knocking out Iranian nuclear sites, the Americans can probably blast some of them. But the longer the operation occurs across a more expansive and variegated terrain, as the element of surprise wears off, the greater the chance that something unexpected happens to those U.S.

warplanes.The Trump administration should only pursue military action against Iran if it believes that Tehran is an immediate threat to the safety and security of the United States. It remains to be seen if that case will be made.

But thus far, it has not been made to the American people. About the Author: Brandon J. WeichertBrandon J.

Weichert, a Senior National Security Editor at The National Interest as well as a contributor at Popular Mechanics, who consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including the Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, the Asia Times, and countless others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy.

His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.Image: Wikimedia Commons.

The post How the U.S. Air Force Plans to Attack Iran—and Why It Might Not Want To appeared first on The National Interest.

.