30,000 lb "MOP" Bomb Built For / Destined For Iran..??

U.S. enemies around the world have dug deep into the earth to hide weapons and harden military targets from attack. So to deal with rogue states who decide to go down under, the U.S. has some developed big, earth-thumping “super bombs,” but none more powerful than this:

Meet the MOP, or Massive Ordnance Penetrator.

Its goal of blasting through 60 feet of concrete with a bomb exploding at 200 feet underground is a tall order. To accomplish that, the school-bus-sized MOP is dropped from a high altitude, and uses a combination of technology and Newton’s laws of physics to punch deep into the earth and obliterate its target.

The MOP is 20 feet in length and weighs 30,000 pounds.  In 2007 the MOP was successfully tested, which led the Air Force to order eight of them at a cost of $28 million in April 2011.

Currently, the B-52 can carry and deploy the MOP, but Boeing and Lockheed Martin are both working on a next generation bomber than can replace the B-52 and carry MOP-sized munitions.

The new weapon recently received a special design accolade, as according to Business Insider, manufacturer Boeing has received the William J. Perry award from the Precision Strike Association to honor “one of the Secretary of Defense’s number one weapons programs.”

Interestingly enough, the MOP is part of the U.S.‘s military’s move towards a decreased reliance on tactical nuclear weapons. The thinking is if you can get enough explosive yield from a conventional bomb, there is no need to risk the fallout and contamination of a tactical nuclear strike.

While the MOP is an innovative new design, massive aerial bombs of different types have been in use for decades. Some have weighed even more than the MOP, and saw use as far back as World War II.

MOAB

The Massive Ordinance Aerial Bomb (MOAB), also called the GBU-43B or colloquially the “Mother Of All Bombs,” was used by the U.S. against the Taliban in Afghanistan. At the time of its initial production, it was the most powerful conventional (non-nuclear) munition in the U.S. arsenal.

At 30-feet-long and 18,000 pounds, the MOAB could only be delivered by a handful of aircraft such as the C-130 Hercules.

Below is a short clip showing a MOAB detonation:

BLU-82 "Daisycutter" (photo: USAF Museum)

The BLU-82 “Daisycutter” is a 15,000 lbs. explosive monster that saw use during the Vietnam war, initially to clear the dense undergrowth for a landing field, which is why is was also known as the “jungle buster.” Later in the war, it was also used for anti-personnel and psychological operations effects.

Unlike a penetrator, though, it did not bury itself on impact and in fact left little or no crater upon detonation. Its explosive force was mostly directed laterally, and it was able to clear out vegetation (or anything else) for a 130 foot radius.

And here is the Daisycutter showing what it can do out in the desert:

T-12 Cloudmaker

The T-12 “Cloudmaker” was the first “Super Bomb” developed by the U.S. for use in the mid-1940′s against hardened bunkers and other targets that were invulnerable to conventional bombs.

The Cloudmaker’s extremely thick nose section allowed it to punch deep into hardened concrete structures and then after a short time fuse detonate underground. This created what was called an “earthquake effect.”

At 42,000 pounds, the “Cloudmaker” was the aerial juggernaut of its time, and paved the way for later super bombs and deep penetrators, including today’s high-tech MOP design.

(h/t Business Insider)

"The Great Prophet" Iran plans new drills near Strait of Hormuz

(AP)  TEHRAN, Iran - Iran is planning new military exercises near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, according to a naval commander, after threatening to close the strait and completing another set of maneuvers.


One sixth of the world's oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's threat to close the passage if the West imposes sanctions on its oil exports unsettled an already nervous world oil market.


The semiofficial Fars news agency late Thursday quoted the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's naval commander, Adm. Ali Fadavi, as saying that the upcoming exercise would be the seventh staging of an annual drill called "The Great Prophet."



Fadavi said the next round of war games would be "different" from previous ones. He did not elaborate. The admiral said the drill would take place in the Iranian month of Bahman, which roughly corresponds to February.


The announcement comes just days the European Union said it was considering a blanket ban on all Iranian oil imports, a ban which would deal a serious blow to Iran's economy - already struggling under a raft of international sanctions.


The Guards, Iran's most powerful military force, have the same air, naval and ground branches as the regular military. They are also in charge of Iran's missile program.


Iran's navy ended a 10-day drill Tuesday in the waters off the Strait.


Military officers said the purpose was to show off Iran's prowess and defense capabilities.


The drill, including widely publicized missile tests, was carried out as international criticism mounts over Tehran's nuclear program. The West believes the program is aimed at developing atomic weapons. Iran denies that, insisting that it is for peaceful purposes.


The U.S. has recently tightened sanctions on Iran, banning transaction with Iran's central bank. That could cripple Iranian oil sales by limiting financial transactions.


Iran threatened to close the strait if the West tried to limit or stop Iran's own oil exports, which account for 80 percent of the country's public revenues.


The country regularly conducts maneuvers and has also been active in fighting piracy in the Gulf of Aden.

UK signals ready to use force to keep Strait open

(Reuters) - Britain on Thursday signaled its readiness to use military force if necessary to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, warning Iran not to miscalculate over the West's determination to prevent disruption to the key shipping route.

Iran threatened last week to stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz if foreign sanctions were imposed on its crude exports over its nuclear ambitions, a move that could trigger military conflict with economies dependent on Gulf oil.

"Alongside the U.S. 5th Fleet in the Gulf, we have naval assets, we have mine counter-measures capability, we have a frigate present there, and we are an integrated part of the allied naval task force in the Gulf and one of the missions of that task force is to ensure that those shipping lanes remain open," British Defence Secretary Philip Hammond told Sky News.

Iran had made similar threats before, but "there should be no miscalculation by the Iranians about the importance that the international community attaches to keeping the Straits of Hormuz open," Hammond said, speaking from Washington where he has gone for talks with his U.S. counterpart Leon Panetta.

Fears of supply disruptions due to rising tensions between the West and Iran have sent oil prices higher.

"Any attempt to close the Straits of Hormuz would be illegal and we need to send a very clear message to Iran that we are determined that the straits should remain open," Hammond said.

Britain's Royal Navy participates in the Combined Maritime Forces, a U.S.-led, Bahrain-based naval flotilla drawn from 25 nations whose missions include counter-piracy, counter-terrorism and security in the Gulf.

The Strait of Hormuz was one of the world's great commercial arteries and its closure would have very significant consequences for the economies of the world, Hammond said.

He said in a speech in Washington earlier that any attempt by Iran to close the strait would fail.

OLIVE BRANCH

At the same time, Hammond held out an olive branch to Iran by urging it to return to negotiations to find a peaceful solution to its nuclear dispute with the West.

The West suspects Iran of seeking to develop a nuclear bomb although Tehran insists its nuclear program is peaceful.

The last round of talks between Iran and six major powers, including Britain, in Istanbul a year ago, got nowhere. Turkey delivered a Western offer for a resumption to Tehran on Thursday and expressed hope they could restart soon.

Britain shut Iran's embassy in London and expelled all its staff after the British Embassy in Tehran was attacked last November by a crowd angry at British sanctions. Britain also closed its Tehran embassy and evacuated its staff.

Hammond, appointed to the job last October, made his first trip to Washington as defence secretary as President Barack Obama unveiled a new defence strategy in line with Pentagon plans to cut spending after a decade of war.

British troops fought alongside Americans in Iraq and still do so in Afghanistan.

Hammond said there was a "clear view both in the UK and the U.S. and indeed in many other allied countries that we will be seeking to avoid prolonged boots-on-the-ground engagements ... of the type that we had in Iraq and that we currently have in Afghanistan (and) that we should invest more in prevention."

"At the same time, of course, the U.S. has to have an eye on the emerging strength of China as a new major military power," he said.

Iran to U.S.: Keep Your Aircraft Carrier Out of the Gulf >>> “We are not in the business of warning the Americans more than once.”

Jon Scott and Leland Vittert brought us some breaking news out of the Middle East regarding new warnings from Iran to the United States.


Iran’s naval chief issued a new warning today demanding that the U.S. not to return its aircraft carrier to the Gulf. Specially, the area in question is the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for 1/6th of the world’s oil supply.


The warnings from Iran come as tension are rising in the Gulf with the Iranian Navy firing a new cruise missile and two shorter-range missiles Monday.
In response, Leland Vittert reports that the Pentagon has acknowledged that the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet does have an aircraft carrier in the area, the U.S.S. John C. Stennis.


Vittert added that the U.S. Navy says it will send whatever ships it wants, whenever it wants, for whatever reason it wants, through the Strait of Hormuz. He also added some perspective to the warnings, saying that the Iranian naval chief has been full of bravado throughout all of this claiming, “We are not in the business of warning the Americans more than once.”

Iran: U.S. in 'No Position' to Give Orders on Strait of Hormuz

TEHRAN –  A senior Iranian commander said Thursday that Washington was "in no position" to give orders to Iran when it comes to the Strait of Hormuz, as tensions continued to rise between the countries over the key oil transit channel.

Brigadier General Hossein Salami, the deputy commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, said that "the Islamic Republic of Iran asks for no other country's permission for the implementation of its defense strategies," Iran's state-run Press TV reported.

Over the past week, Iran has repeatedly warned it could impose sanctions on oil exports and threatened to block the strait, which is used to transport about 15 million barrels of oil per day, The Wall Street Journal reported.

George Little, the Pentagon press secretary, said Wednesday that "any attempt to close the strait will not be tolerated," which angered Iranian officials.

His comments were echoed by the US Navy's Fifth Fleet, which said any country that "threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations."

Responding to the US stance, Salami said Thursday, "Our response to threats is threats."

Earlier Thursday, Iranian official Commodore Mahmoud Mousavi said that a US aircraft carrier entered a zone near the strait, which is being used by the Iranian Navy for war games.

"A US aircraft carrier was spotted inside the maneuver zone ... by a navy reconnaissance aircraft," Mousavi was quoted as saying by the state-run IRNA news agency.

The vessel was believed to be the USS John C. Stennis, one of the US Navy's biggest warships.

The US, the EU and key Arab states recently intensified discussions about the possibility of imposing an embargo on oil purchases from Iran.

US President Barack Obama was expected in the coming weeks to sign new legislation preventing any business dealings with Iran's Central Bank, through which Tehran executes most of its oil sales. The US Congress passed the restrictions Dec. 15 as part of a bill authorizing more than $660 billion in defense spending over the next year, the WSJ reported.

Though analysts said it was highly unlikely Iran would close the strait, as it would severely impact the country's own economy -- Iran is the fourth-largest producer of crude oil in the world -- its threats to do so increased over the past week.

Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said Wednesday that it would be "very easy" for Iran's naval forces to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, while Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi said Tuesday that "not even a drop of oil will flow through the Persian Gulf" if Iran's oil is embargoed.

"If our enemies in the West start conspiring against us, we'll take strong action to put them in their place," he added.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/12/29/us-aircraft-carrier-enters-zone-near-iranian-oil-route-as-tensions-rise/#ixzz1hxtSZsQb

Pentagon: Iranian Disruption of Oil Route 'Will Not Be Tolerated'

U.S. military officials warned Wednesday that any attempt by Iran to disrupt oil shipments at the mouth of the Persian Gulf "will not be tolerated," as Iran threatened for the second day in a row to interfere with the critical passageway. 

Pentagon spokesman George Little describe the route, the Strait of Hormuz, as an "economic lifeline" vital to stability in the region. He said any attempt to block it would be "problematic." 

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Navy's 5th fleet warned Iran against disrupting shipments in the strait, saying the U.S. Navy keeps a "robust presence in the region" and is "ready to counter malevolent actions to ensure freedom of navigation." 

"Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated," Fleet spokeswoman Lt. Rebecca Rebarich said. 

The warning comes as Iranian officials stand by earlier threats to use the passageway to retaliate if the West imposes new sanctions targeting Tehran's oil exports over the country's suspect nuclear program. 

Iran's navy chief warned Wednesday that his country can close the waterway. "Closing the Strait of Hormuz is very easy for Iranian naval forces," Adm. Habibollah Sayyari told state-run Press TV. "Iran has comprehensive control over the strategic waterway."

On Tuesday, Vice President Mohamed Reza Rahimi also threatened to close the strait, cutting off oil exports, if the West imposes sanctions on Iran's oil shipments. 

All of this comes at a tense time, as the Iranian navy carries out a 10-day naval exercise that includes dispatching warships and drones over the vital waterway. The exercises are being carried out on the eastern side of the strait and down into the Gulf of Aden and could put Iranian ships on a collision course with U.S. naval vessels. 

The strait is just 34 miles wide, and about 20 percent of the world's oil shipments pass through. 

The mere threat of closing the strait has caused oil prices to rise above $100 a barrel. 

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/28/pentagon-iranian-disruption-oil-route-will-not-be-tolerated/#ixzz1hvOQK0B2 

Iran says it's easy to close Strait of Hormuz

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran's navy chief says his country can easily close the strategic Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, the passageway through which a sixth of the world's oil flows.


Adm. Habibollah Sayyari told state-run Press TV Wednesday that the navy is in control of the vital waterway and can readily block it. It was the second such warning from a senior official in two days.


Vice President Mohamed Reza Rahimi threatened Tuesday that Iran will close the strait, cutting off oil exports, if the West imposes sanctions on Iranian oil shipments to punish Tehran for its nuclear program, which the west suspects is aimed at making weapons.

Iranian Official Threatens Military Drill Sealing Off the Strait of Hormuz

A high-ranking Iranian official has said Iran's military will practice sealing off the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil transport channel, in a provocative move that illustrates Iran’s capability of disrupting the world’s oil supply.

The announcement Monday by Parviz Sarvari sent oil prices up about $3 to $100 a barrel based on the speculation of a disruption during the military drills, Bloomberg reported.

“Soon we will hold a military maneuver on how to close the Strait of Hormuz,” Sarvari, a member of the Iranian parliament’s National Security Committee, said in a statement reported by Reuters. “If the world wants to make the region insecure, we will make the world insecure.”

Iran has long used the threat of disrupting oil production as a main military deterrent, a sort of economic missile in its silo.

Although Sarvari did not name a specific country making the region insecure, though diplomatic tensions between the U.S. and Iran have been on the rise recently over the U.S. drone that went down in Iran.

The report of the planned exercise in the Strait of Hormuz is the latest example of Iranian provocation. In September, Iran’s navy laid out plans to move naval vessels out of the Persian Gulf and into the Atlantic Ocean “near maritime borders of the United States,” the Tehran Times reported.

Iran also has faced international pressure for it's nuclear program. Iran insists the program is for peaceful uses, but in November, the International Atomic Energy Agency issued a report that Tehran has conducted secret experiments whose sole purpose is the development of atomic weapons. Iran denies that charge.

About 15.5 million barrels of oil a day, about a sixth of global consumption, flows through the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported, citing the U.S. Department of Energy.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/12/13/iranian-official-threatens-military-drill-sealing-off-strait-hormuz/#ixzz1gS4niRk6