‘Extreme challenge for the pilots': What it feels like to fly a B-2 Spirit bomber jet
Air Force Global Strike Command Deputy Commander Mark Weatherington explains what it's like to operate a Northrop B-2 Spirit bomber jet.
'The B-2 is very similar to most of the aircraft that we operate,' Mr Weatherington told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
'Long duration … can be an extreme challenge for the pilots, very fatiguing.
'It's an extreme effort, but they handle it very well, skilfully and professionally.'
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Inside the US B-2 bombers that had toilet, microwave and a snack cooler for pilots on their 37-hour Fordow bombing raid on Iran
The B-2 stealth bombers used to attack the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant are equipped with toilets, microwaves and usually a cooler for snacks to make life more comfortable for the pilots who were stuck in the cockpit for the 37-hour trip from Missouri to Iran and back. The fleet of advanced American bombers — originally designed to drop nuclear bombs on the Soviet Union — took off from the Whiteman Air Force Base outside Kansas City on Friday for an 18-hour ride across the world, refueling several times in mid-air, officials said. For such long trips to be bearable, the high-tech bombers have their cockpits outfitted with mini refrigerators and a microwave oven to keep their crew fed and alert. And just like any plane equipped for long-haul flights, the B-2 Spirit has a toilet, too. There's also enough room for one pilot to lay down and rest while the other flies the batwing jet. The B-2 first entered service in 1997, and each one costs more than $2 billion; the US Air Force has a fleet of 19 — after losing one in a crash in 2008. With a wingspan of 172 feet and a crew of just two pilots — the B-2 relies on automation to help complete long-haul flights. The seven B-2 bombers deployed for operation 'Midnight Hammer' flew in near complete radio silence, with their two-man crews taking turns to sleep during the tense night, The Telegraph reported. The 37 hours spent to attack Fordow marked the longest B-2 bomber mission since the initial American assault on Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Pilots for these types of aircraft are trained to endure long, grueling flights, with past crews bringing cots aboard or even full camping pads, according to The Atlantic. The stealth bombers did not spend the entire mission alone. A fleet of fighter jets and support aircraft deployed to meet up with the B-2s as they approached Iran. 'The B-2s linked up with escort and support aircraft in a complex, tightly timed maneuver requiring exact synchronization across multiple platforms in a narrow piece of airspace, all done with minimal communications,' Gen Daniel Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, touted in a statement. The 25-minute operation inside Iran began on Saturday at 6:40 p.m. ET, with a lead B-2 bomber dropping two GBU-57 'bunker buster' munitions on the 'first of several aim points at Fordow,' Caine said. 'The remaining bombers then hit their targets, as well, with a total of 14 MOPs (Massive Ordnance Penetrators) dropped against two nuclear target areas,' he added. It marked the first time that the US used the massive, 15-ton GBU-57 bunker buster bombs in a military attack. 'There is not another military in the world that could have done this,' President Trump wrote on Truth Social when revealing the attack on Iran. Originally published as Inside the US B-2 bombers that had toilet, microwave and a snack cooler for pilots on their 37-hour Fordow bombing raid on Iran
