Posts Tagged ‘Al Dhafra Air Base’

The Liberation of Iran Has Begun

Saturday, February 28th, 2026

Since the Islamic Republic of Iran refuses to give up its nuclear weapons program or free its own people, the liberation of Iran has begun.

The United States and Israel launched long-awaited strikes on Iran early Saturday morning, as President Trump vowed to destroy their missile capabilities, “annihilate” their navy, and ensure the nation never obtains a nuclear weapon.

Trump, in a video message released overnight that made clear the goal is regime change, urged the Iranian people to “take over your government” when the operation is finished.

“The hour of your freedom is at hand,” Trump said. “This will be, probably, your only chance for generations. . . . This is the moment for action. Do not let it pass.”

America and Israel reportedly plan to carry out several days of attacks, and Trump cautioned that while the administration is taking every step to minimize risks to American personnel, “we may have casualties.”

He added, “We’re doing this for the future, and it is a noble mission.” He urged Iranian security forces to lay down their weapons in exchange for immunity, or face “certain death.”

Snip.

During his State of the Union address, Trump began to make a broader case for military action against Iran, citing, as he did in his video remarks released overnight, the regime’s attacks over the past half-century against U.S. personnel in the region.

You can only tug on Superman’s cape for so long.

The United States is calling it Operation Epic Fury, while Israel is going with Lion’s Roar.

Suchomimus has compiled footage of the strikes.

Some highlights:

  • A strike against “Supreme Leader” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s house. The Iranian woman recording the aftermath of the strike sounds “absolutely delighted.” It was hit in broad daylight, indicating how little American and Israeli fear Iran’s degraded, Russian-sourced air defense systems.
  • A salvo of at least 30 tomahawk cruise missiles launched from the Mediterranean flying over Iraq en-route to targets in Iran.
  • Iran is (naturally) launching retaliatory rockets at Israel.
  • One of the U.S./Israeli strike targets is Iranian Defense Minister Amir Hatami, who has been reported killed.

    • Second Suchomimus video:

    Highlights:

  • U.S. naval base in Bahrain hit by retaliatory Iranian missiles. “This seems like it may have been a waste of missiles because reports are saying that this base was largely cleared out prior to this. So America evacuated much of the imported equipment and troops and ships from here to a safer place. So there was nothing of importance here.” And geolocation shows that Iran might actually have hit a nearby mosque.

  • A possible successful strike in Dubai.
  • Also Iranian missiles being successfully intercepted over Abu Dhabi. Likely target was Al Dhafra Air Base, but nothing seems to have been hit there.
  • But a possible successful strike on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, though its not clear what, if anything, was hit.
  • “Two places hit by the US are Iranian naval bases Asaluyeh and Chabahar…Asaluyeh is a major target. This is known to be an underground storage complex for the Iranian Navy in which speedboats and coastal defense missiles are stored here.”
  • “Also confirmed hit was the headquarters of the IRGC, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, who are a major branch of the Iranian armed forces.” This is near Damavand, an underground complex that was reportedly hit with bunker buster bombs.
  • Israel reportedly hit Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i, head of Iran’s judiciary courts.

    • A quick LiveUAMap snapshot of in-theater action:

    President Trump’s announcement of the strikes:

  • “A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran.”
  • “Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating eminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people.”
  • “Its menacing activities directly endanger the United States, our troops, our bases overseas, and our allies throughout the world. For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted death to America and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder, targeting the United States, our troops, and the innocent people in many, many countries.”
  • He covers the regime’s role in the Iranian Hostage Crisis, the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing, and the 2000 attack on the USS Cole.
  • “Iranian forces killed and maimed hundreds of American service members in Iraq. The regime’s proxies have continued to launch countless attacks against American forces stationed in the Middle East in recent years, as well as US naval and commercial vessels in international shipping lands. It’s been mass terror and we’re not going to put up with it any longer.”
  • “it was Iran’s proxy Hamas that launched the monstrous October 7th attacks on Israel, slaughtering more than 1,000 innocent people, including 46 Americans, while taking 12 of our citizens hostage. It was brutal, something like the world has never seen before.”
  • “Iran is the world’s number one state sponsor of terror, and just recently killed tens of thousands of its own citizens on the street as they protested.”
  • “It has always been the policy of the United States, in particular my administration, that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. I’ll say it again. They can never have a nuclear weapon.”
  • “They’ve rejected every opportunity to renounce their nuclear ambitions, and we can’t take it anymore.”
  • “Just imagine how emboldened this regime would be if they ever had and actually were armed with nuclear weapons as a means to deliver their message.”
  • “For these reasons, the United States military is undertaking a massive and ongoing operation to prevent this very wicked, radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests.”
  • “We are going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground. It will be totally again obliterated.”
  • “We are going to annihilate their navy.”
  • “We are going to ensure that the region’s terrorist proxies can no longer destabilize the region or the world and attack our forces and no longer use their IEDs, or roadside bombs as they are sometimes called, to so gravely wound and kill thousands and thousands of people including many Americans.”
  • “And we will ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon. It’s a very simple message. They will never have a nuclear weapon.”
  • “This regime will soon learn that no one should challenge the strength and might of the United States armed forces.”
  • “My administration has taken every possible step to minimize the risk to US personnel in the region. Even so, and I do not make this statement lightly, the Iranian regime seeks to kill. The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties. That often happens in war.”
  • “But we’re doing this not for now. We’re doing this for the future. And it is a noble mission. We pray for every service member as they selflessly risk their lives to ensure that Americans and our children will never be threatened by a nuclear armed Iran.”
  • “We ask God to protect all of our heroes in harm’s way. And we trust that, with his help, the men and women of the armed forces will prevail. We have the greatest in the world, and they will prevail.”
  • “To the members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, the armed forces, and all of the police, I say tonight that you must lay down your weapons and have complete immunity, or in the alternative, face certain death. So, lay down your arms, you will be treated fairly with total immunity, or you will face certain death.”
  • “Finally, to the great, proud people of Iran, I say tonight that the hour of your freedom is at hand. Stay sheltered. Don’t leave your home. It’s very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere.”
  • “When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations. For many years, you have asked for America’s help, but you never got it. No president was willing to do what I am willing to do tonight. Now you have a president who is giving you what you want. So let’s see how you respond.”
  • “America is backing you with overwhelming strength and devastating force. Now is the time to seize control of your destiny and to unleash the prosperous and glorious future that is close within your reach. This is the moment for action. Do not let it pass.”
  • “May God bless the brave men and women of America’s armed forces. May God bless the United States of America. May God bless you all. Thank you.”

    • Possibly more later…

    Update: Unconfirmed reports out of Israel that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is dead. Iran denying.

    Update 2: The Taliban call on Muslims worldwide…not to support Iran.

    I don’t think many people had that on their bingo card…

    Update 3: Peter Zeihan weighs in, and we didn’t even have to wait a week:

    He says all the Iranian drone and missile facilities were hit, and that the Israelis were ones hitting Iranian leadership. But no sign they’ve hit the Shahed production facilities…yet. And no sign of attack on Iran’s energy infrastructure.

    His military sources are generally better than his political sources, but several grains of salt are usually in order anyway.

    Update 4: Power plant on Kharg Island, the terminal for the vast majority of Iran’s oil exports, hit:

    (Hat tip: Instapundit.)

    Update 5: We’re hitting Iran with clones of their own Shahed drones:

    Though presumably with better guidance systems…

    Update 6: PJMedia is reporting Ali Khamenei confirmed dead.

    Despite some initial debate, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during the airstrikes Saturday morning, Israeli officials report.

    “Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated in an Israeli strike on Tehran, with his body found under the rubble caused by an Israeli airstrike, senior Israeli officials were informed on Saturday evening,” the Jerusalem Post reports. “Documentation of Khamenei’s body was reportedly shown to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.”

    Update 7: Suchomimus has footage of Khamenei’s flattened compound.

    Probably more on this video later. It’s Saturday and I’ve got Other Stuff that needs doing…

    Update 8: Via Stephen Green at Instapundit, some Strategery:

    Venezuela, Iran, Cuba, Greenland, Panama…it’s all interconnected and it all points to China.

    As U.S. energy ramps up, and China is deprived of subsidized oil, subsidized shipping channels, freedom of navigation through sovereign waters and allies that can cause the U.S. problems…their global position diminishes substantially and their costs of doing business skyrocket.

    Venezuela and Iran account for something like 20% of China’s oil imports and they’re getting an insane deal on it. China has a huge problem if that oil goes away.

    You’d be forgiven for thinking Trump’s foreign policy seems random and chaotic, but it’s actually one of the most focused and (thus far) well executed foreign policies in at least 2 generations.

    Update 9: Reports that Iranian drones and missiles have hit Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait. Minor injuries reported.

    Update 10: Heh x3: “Ayatollah To Give Speech As Soon As Officials Find The Rest Of His Body.”

    “Iranian Generals Kicking Themselves For Not Just Meeting Over Zoom.”

    “Mamdani Orders Flags At One World Trade Center Flown Half-Staff To Mourn Ayatollah.”

    Update 11: Khamenei death confirmed by Iran.

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    Posted in Foreign Policy, Jihad, Military, video | 27 Comments »

    Houthis Get Brrrrrrted

    Sunday, May 11th, 2025

    Here’s an under-reported aspect of Operation Rough Rider (i.e., the Trump Administration beating the Houthis with a very large stick): The deployment of A-10 Warthogs to teach the Houthis the error of their ways.

    The successful missions displayed some interesting capabilities.

  • “After three years without a major combat deployment, America’s most rugged aircraft is back in theater, and this time, it’s not just covering troops; it’s striking mobile launcher teams before they escape.”
  • “On March 29, 2025, several A-10 Warthogs from the 124th Fighter Wing and 300 ground crew from the 190th Fighter Squadron deployed to the Middle East. This deployment marks the largest such deployment of this infamous aircraft in three years and it’s for more than just showing the flag. Operating out of Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, these aircraft are giving a big helping hand to the Navy as they battle a foe with ever revolving tactics.” Namely learning to shoot-and-scoot after launching their attacks on shipping.
  • The missiles Houthis fire are “are typically C-802s that carry a 165-kilogram armor-piercing payload and can reach targets up to 180 kilometers away.”
  • “The first confirmed strike came on April 1. After taking off from their air base, the Warthogs were on station within 18 minutes. Thanks to its 11,000-pound fuel tank captivity, the A-10s can loiter over target areas for up to 90 minutes before having to head back to base.”
  • Details of the formidable GAU-8/A Avenger rotary cannon snipped, because I think all of my readers are familiar with it by now.
  • “On that day, a circling RC-135 Rivet Joint intercepted Houthi radio signals that they were going to launch a strike soon. Because the US has destroyed practically every secure communications method the Houthis had, enemy commanders in the field have to rely on regular civilian cell phones to talk to each other, which makes finding these guys that much easier.”
  • “The attack was supposed to go down in less than 20 minutes, so the two A-10s punched it at full power to get there. With a max speed of about 420 miles per hour, it would take roughly 18 minutes to get there, with not a second to spare.” Yeah, this channel loves to make things overly dramatic.
  • “As the A-10s flew across the mountains and desert of central Yemen, the pilots are using this device to scan for the targets. This is called the AAN/AAQ-28 Litening pod [Yeah, that’s the way it’s spelled. -LP], and is how the pilot ensures that the A-10’s payloads make it on target.”
  • “The pod measures 87 inches long and is 16 inches in diameter. Inside this roughly 440-pound pod are a series of high-resolution forward-looking infrared sensors, laser designators, and CCTV cameras; the pilots can spot man-sized targets up to 28 miles away.”
  • “With no enemy radars up due to US forces knocking them out in prior strikes, the A-10s came in low and slow. At a distance of 6,500 meters away, they let loose with their cannons and gave ‘em the BRRT the aircraft is so famous for.”
  • “In those two seconds, the A-10s fired about 260 baseball-sized rounds, each going at 3,500 feet per second. As one can probably guess, the launcher was neutralized.”
  • “On April 2, an ISR satellite detected unusual heat signatures northeast of Sa’dah. Since very few people in Yemen own a car, much less a 5-ton truck, intelligence flagged it as a probable mobile launcher and passed it along to the Air Force for a closer look.”
  • “With the Houthis now fully aware the A-10s ere in theater, the call went out far and wide, and soon every Houthi radar left was scanning the skies, looking for an easy victory. Thankfully, these aircraft were not gonna let them. These planes are called EA-18G Growlers. If you think they look like F-18s, that’s because they kind of are. Built on the same body, these aircraft are specially modified with sensors and weapons specially designed for a mission called suppression of enemy air defenses or SEAD.”
  • “The Growlers’ main mission is taking out Houthi radars with systems with this. This system here on this Growler is called the Next Generation Jammer…As Houthi gunners turn on their radars, they send out a particular frequency. Since the Next Gen Jammers in service operate in the mid-band of frequencies around the 2–6 Gigahertz range, any radar pulsing in that range can get picked up. This is because the US maintains a mission library of every adversary search, surface, fire control, and missile radar in the world. When the system picks up these signals, it automatically knows what kind of system it is and uses basic geometry to figure out where the enemy radar is located.”
  • “The pilot then sends a continuous burst of about 270 kilowatts of power towards the Houthi radar. Because radars know the time when every radar wave is sent out and know what time it arrives, the radar uses that data to help figure out the position. However, when blasted with such a strong energy pulse, the radar can’t see any of its own emissions because this jammer is just overloading the system with a continuous stream of energy. Although some modern radars are jam-resistant, most Houthi ones are based on legacy Soviet or Iranian models that get fried.”
  • “Within 15 minutes, the Growlers from the USS Eisenhower had knocked out three Houthi radar installations.”
  • Using their Litening targeting pods, [the A-10s] picked up movement—three launchers, including one where the Houthis were putting a camouflaged tarp on to hide it again. The lead pilot fired a laser-guided AGM-65 Maverick from 26 miles away to prevent them from getting away. With its 125-pound-shaped charge, the Maverick struck the first launcher center mass. The secondary detonation from the missile on board was huge. Shrapnel tore through the other two nearby launchers and knocked fist-sized holes in them.”
  • “Their teams attempted to flee in a Toyota pickup, but they didn’t make it far. The trailing Warthog rolled in low. At just under 250 knots, the pilot squeezed the trigger. A half-second burst of the GAU-8 sent 50 rounds slamming into the truck and neutralized four more operators.”
  • “By April 10, Houthi activity had visibly shifted. Launch points previously active went cold.”
  • The Houthis grew even more cautious, but the A-10s sensors can even detect heat signatures coming from underground bunkers.
  • “On April 13, operating out of Jawf province, [Houthis] wheeled out a launcher preloaded with a C-802, set up near an irrigation berm, and awaited GPS lock from their Iranian handlers. Unfortunately for them, a US drone had spotted the movement 40 minutes earlier. A Warthog was already on station and soon inbound. At 3,000 feet, flying just over the mountain tops, the pilot waited just until he reached the Maverick’s ideal release range of around seven nautical miles. With the ability to carry six of these missiles, with three under each wing, the pilot let loose with two of them to neutralize thelauncher and its accompanying radar. Upon seeing the Warthog, the Houthi gunners abandoned their launchers and tried to run but the last thing they heard was a BRRT, and it was all over.”
  • “Strategically, the A-10’s success has reignited debates over close air support. While the Air Force still plans to retire the fleet by 2029, Marine and Navy commanders have petitioned for extended deployment rotations. This is because the numbers speak for themselves. From April 2 through April 17, the A-10s flew 218 sorties without a single US loss. According to CENTCOM, 47 confirmed missile systems have been knocked out, along with nine senior Houthi commanders neutralized. Because of this, the A-10 has proven itself a valuable asset in what many have considered a Navy-centric fight.”

    • Remember, the A-10 is the weapon the air force tried multiple times to kill, yet it’s still flying vital missions a quarter of the way through the 21st Century. The latest deployment may indicate there’s still some life left in the old hog yet…

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    Posted in Jihad, Military, video | 13 Comments »