Did President Trump just pull the trigger on a major decision? When dozens of U.S. Air Force tankers started taking off from their bases, all sorts of speculation started to erupt on social media. And then when those tankers started flying east across the Atlantic, the level of speculation escalated to a frenzy. As I write this article, the Pentagon has still not explained what all of these tankers are doing. But TWZ has accurately noted that what we are witnessing is “very peculiar”…
Over two dozen U.S. Air Force KC-135R and KC-46A tankers from across the United States appeared on flight-tracking software yesterday evening, taking off from their bases and heading east over the Atlantic. It isn’t clear if they were ‘dragging’ any combat aircraft with them, but there wasn’t any obvious signs of that.
While tanker movements in this direction are far from abnormal, such a large, near-simultaneous migration of the jets was very peculiar, especially at a time of extreme crisis in the Middle East. The exact reason for the mass deployment is unclear, although many of the potential answers would indicate a change, or preparations for a potential change, in the current conflict between Israel and Iran.
I have never seen anything like this.
According to the most recent reports, “more than 30” U.S. Air Force KC-135R Stratotankers and KC-46 Pegasus Tankers are flying east across the Atlantic Ocean…
Dozens of American military aerial-refueling aircraft left U.S. shores heading east across the Atlantic Ocean early on Monday in an unprecedented deployment of the U.S. Air Force.
The KC‑135 and KC‑46 planes, more than 30 in all, might participate in a scheduled NATO exercise in Europe. However, analysts and regional officials speculate the mission could extend to the Middle East, possibly supporting operations related to the ongoing hostilities between Israel and Iran.
I think that it is quite likely that these tankers are headed over to Israel to provide refueling support.
Because Israel only has minimal aerial refueling capabilities, there is a limit as to how many long-range strikes the IDF can conduct in Iran…
As we have discussed repeatedly for years, and especially since this conflict kicked off, Israel lacks robust aerial refueling capabilities, with just a handful of aging 707 tankers (around seven operational) available to support hundreds of fighter aircraft. This is a massively limiting factor when it comes to sortie generation for long-range strikes into Iran. It also severely limits how long aircraft can remain on station once in their assigned target area and how deeply they can penetrate into Iranian territory.
As Israel gains air superiority further east over Iran, aerial tanking becomes even more important. It also allows fighters to employ direct attack weapons, as opposed to much more expensive, and, in some cases, less effective standoff munitions. Bringing the Israeli Air Force’s heaviest bunker-busters to bear on targets will require Israeli aircraft to be in close proximity to them, in particular. Additional tanker support would greatly help with these efforts.
If dozens of U.S. tankers start providing the IDF with refueling support, that will allow Israel to hit Iran much harder and much more frequently.
It is also possible that these tankers are headed over to the Middle East because the U.S. is preparing for a scenario in which it will have to start attacking Iran directly.
Yesterday, I listed 3 potential trigger events which could draw the U.S. directly into the conflict.
Interestingly, on Saturday the U.S. Air Force broadcast an Emergency Action Message that was unusually long…
The US Air Force has broadcast two encrypted emergency codes, typically utilized for crucial military communications, sometimes pertaining to nuclear command and control.
The initial Emergency Action Message (EAM) was aired on Saturday, exhibiting a complexity far beyond the standard signals that usually span around 30 characters.
This covert message, typically released a day later, on Sundays, extended to 246 characters. It coincided with reciprocal bombardment between Israel and Iran as the two Middle Eastern countries continued their hostilities.
And then on Sunday the U.S. Air Force broadcast an Emergency Action Message that was even longer…
A subsequent communication was issued on Sunday, this time extending to 290 characters, again through the US Air Force’s High Frequency Global Communications System, reports the Mirror US.
What in the world is going on?
I think that there is far more happening behind the scenes than we are being told.
Ultimately, Israel’s success in this war will be determined by how much damage is done to Iran’s nuclear facilities.
According to the IAEA, the 15,000 centrifuges at Natanz have likely been seriously damaged or destroyed…
It is very likely all the roughly 15,000 centrifuges operating at Iran’s biggest uranium enrichment plant at Natanz were badly damaged or destroyed because of a power cut caused by an Israeli strike, the UN nuclear watchdog chief told the BBC on Monday.
The International Atomic Energy Agency and its Director General Rafael Grossi had previously said the centrifuges at the underground enrichment plant at Natanz may have been damaged as a result of an airstrike on its power supply, even though the hall housing the plant itself did not seem to have been hit.
“Our assessment is that with this sudden loss of external power, in great probability the centrifuges have been severely damaged if not destroyed altogether,” Grossi said in an interview with the BBC.
But the facilities at Fordow are much harder to get at because they are very deep underground.
The U.S. has bunker buster bombs that could potentially do the job, and that is one of the main reasons why the Israelis want the U.S. to join the operation…
“While the US has B-2 stealth bombers with 30,000lb massive ordnance penetrators that are designed just for this type of strike, Israel’s options are more limited — if it is operating by itself,” says a report in the Financial Times. “Israeli F-15 fighter bombers can carry 4,000-5,000lb GBU-28 bunker-buster bombs, each capable of punching through 5-6m of concrete. Israel does have such bombs but their numbers are a closely guarded secret, and few analysts believe the country has enough on its own to do the job.”
Israel’s forces “don’t have enough 5,000-pounders” to take out Fordow and Natanz, retired US Air Force General Charles Wald, who now works for the Jewish Institute for the National Security of America, had said in April.
We shall see what happens.
I have a feeling that there will be all sorts of “surprises” in the days ahead.
Right now, the USS Nimitz carrier strike group is headed toward the Middle East, and the USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group is already there…
The USS Nimitz carrier strike group is on its way to the Middle East from the South China Sea, a U.S. official told Fox News.
The Nimitz strike group was previously scheduled to replace the USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group, which has been deployed for several months, but is now heading to the Middle East ahead of schedule. The two will now be in the Middle East at the same time.
USS Carl Vinson was the only aircraft carrier in the region as of last Friday, U.S. defense officials told Fox News.
The “final showdown” with Iran that I have been writing about for such a long time has arrived.
Israel has achieved aerial superiority over Iranian airspace, and the Iranian regime feels backed into a corner.
Of course a cornered predator is the most dangerous kind of predator.
I believe that this story is far from over.
There has already been a tremendous amount of death and destruction, but I anticipate that we will see much more as this conflict rolls along.
Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”. When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing. You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter. Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites. These are such troubled times, and people need hope. John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.