Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Latest in Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Satellite imagery from Vantor shows that a site long linked to Iran's nuclear program has been struck in a manner that raises the question of whether 30,000-pound GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bombs were employed.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Did B-2s Just Drop GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators On Another Iranian Nuclear Site? (Updated)

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman

Posted on Mar 12, 2026

Last year, the U.S. government was able to reverse engineer a critical subcomponent for the 30,000-pound GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bomb by leveraging technology from the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missile.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

New GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator Parts Reverse Engineered From ATACMS Ballistic Missile Tech

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Feb 16, 2026

The U.S. Air Force has awarded a contract for the development and production of a new Next Generation Penetrator (NGP) bunker buster bomb.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator’s Replacement Prototypes Just Ordered By USAF

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 8, 2025

The Pentagon is waiting for comprehensive battle damage assessment to see how well the MOP worked against Iranian nuclear facilities and how it can be improved.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator’s Results From Iran Strike Will Inform Its Future: Defense Officials

By Howard Altman

Updated on Jul 10, 2025

The U.S. Air Force is exploring new options to help with the development of improved fuzes for the 30,000-pound GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bomb.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

New Fuzes For GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators Requested By USAF

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Jul 7, 2025

The Pentagon has shared extensive new information about the use of 30,000-pound GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bombs in recent strikes on Iran, a mission it says was 15 years in the making.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Everything We Just Learned About The GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator Strikes On Iran

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Jun 26, 2025

The U.S. Air Force's first combat employment of 30,000-pound GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bombs in recent strikes on Iranian nuclear sites draws new attention to work toward a successor.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator Successor In The Works

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Jun 24, 2025

Satellite imagery shows clear evidence that Iran took steps to seal off its nuclear enrichment facility at Fordow in the days leading up to the U.S. strikes, which would have helped shield it against a potential ground raid.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Iran’s Fordow Nuclear Site Likely Sealed Up Before B-2 Strikes

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Jun 24, 2025

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Air Force Gen. Dan "Razin" Caine have now briefed TWZ and other reporters on the historic strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last night, dubbed Operation Might Hammer.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

B-2 Strikes On Iran: What We Know About Operation Midnight Hammer (Updated)

By Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway, Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Jun 22, 2025

C-130 from the IAF dropping material via airdrop.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Could Israeli C-130s Drop GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator Bunker Busters?

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Jun 18, 2025

U.S. Air Force B-2 stealth bombers have not dropped any GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker buster bombs on Yemen's Houthis since the Trump administration launched a renewed aerial campaign against them, two U.S. officials have told TWZ.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

B-2s Have Not Dropped Massive Ordnance Penetrators On Yemen During Diego Garcia Missions: Officials

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman

Updated on Apr 17, 2025

The U.S. Air Force quietly fixed a problem with the integration of the 30,000-pound class GBU-57/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bomb onto the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber last year. As part of the integration work, the service also conducted an important test of a new "smart fuze" for the MOP to help improve the weapon's effectiveness, even when the exact depth and positioning of the buried target are not definitively known.
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Massive Ordnance Penetrator Bunker Buster Grows More Potent

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Feb 6, 2025

B-2 MOP Yemen iran
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

B-2 Spirits Just Sent A Very Ominous Message To Iran

By Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Oct 17, 2024

Natanz nuclear facility satellite view
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Iranian Underground Nuclear Facility May Be A Hard Target For America’s Biggest Bunker Busters

By Oliver Parken

Posted on May 24, 2023

MOP Bunker Buster
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

Our Best Look Yet At The Massive Ordnance Penetrator Bunker Buster Bomb

By Oliver Parken

Posted on May 4, 2023

The Air Force’s New 5,000-Pound Bunker Buster Bomb Breaks Cover
Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)

The Air Force’s New 5,000-Pound Bunker Buster Bomb Breaks Cover

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Oct 12, 2021