The U.S. Air Force’s GBU-43 Massive Ordnance Air Blast weapon, nicknamed the "mother of all bombs," could figure prominently in any new airstrike plans targeting Iran.
uncertain
weapon → nickname → Iran
"The mother of all bombs is not nuclear," Trump said.
asserted
Trump → say → bombs
It’s like a tiny nuclear bomb, but the mother of all bombs is one big bomb, but it’s not nuclear.
asserted
it → ’ → bombs
"I wouldn’t use nuclear.
asserted
I → use → nuclear
We don’t have to," Trump said.
asserted
Trump → have → ?
He’s right.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
The U.S. has a range of precision weapons that can knock out any suspicious target in Iran, including the construction activity at Pickaxe mountain.
asserted
that → have → mountain
Admiral Bradley Cooper, Commander, United States Central Command, has detailed knowledge of high-value Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps sites that could be MOAB targets.
uncertain
that → have → sites
President Trump has said he won’t strike Iran prior to the mid-terms, but clearly he is looking at Central Command’s strike briefing charts in great detail.
asserted
he → say → detail
And he wants Iran to know it.
asserted
Iran → want → it
Trump ordered the first use of a MOAB in Afghanistan in April 2017
The MOAB was dropped on April 13, 2017, on a cave complex in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan.
asserted
MOAB → order → Province
"There was no surprise," then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis said of the MOAB.
asserted
Mattis → be → MOAB
"The battle was going on, and we were going to use what was necessary to break ISIS," he added.
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he → go → ISIS
Mattis said he wasn’t going to waste time "digging into tunnels to count bodies"; CNN reported 94 ISIS fighters killed.
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fighters → say → bodies
While America’s B-2, B-52 and B-1 bombers can easily carry the weight of the 21,000-lb. MOAB, the problem is the shape.
asserted
problem → carry → MOAB
The MOAB used in 2017 was too big to fit on the standard racks and rotary launchers in the bomber weapons bays.
asserted
MOAB → use → bays
For the Afghanistan mission, the MOAB was loaded on a special cradle and slid out of the back ramp of an MC-130 while in flight.
asserted
MOAB → load → flight
Yes, the basic C-130 is a cargo plane, but the Special Operations versions like the MC-130 are adapted for clandestine missions.
asserted
versions → adapt → missions
This is also where air dominance over Iran comes in handy.
asserted
dominance → come → Iran
The initial weeks of Operation Epic Fury knocked out Iran’s Russian-built integrated air defenses.
asserted
weeks → knock → defenses
Subsequent strikes by CENTCOM have prevented Iran from reconstituting their air defenses.
asserted
strikes → prevent → defenses
MC-130s on a MOAB mission might also get help with electronic warfare and other attack suppression from the Space Force, U.S. Air Force, and U.S. Navy carrier-based aircraft like the EA-18G, F-35C and E-2D.
MOAB is a precision weapon
uncertain
MOAB → get → G
The clue is the official designation of GBU-43 which stands for Guided Bomb Unit.
asserted
which → stand → Unit
Small drogue parachutes stabilize the MOAB upon release and then the satellite-guidance kit guides the bomb to the designated point of impact.
asserted
kit → stabilize → impact
MOAB is actually an air burst; earlier, smaller heavy air blast weapons were used in World War II and in Vietnam under the name "daisy-cutter."
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weapons → use → name
The theory behind an air burst is to maximize blast effect without muffling by the ground.
asserted
theory → maximize → ground
The MOAB was built in great haste by the Air Force Research Lab just prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.
asserted
MOAB → build → 2003
At the time, reports suggested Iraq might have built large underground bunkers for dictator Saddam Hussein’s loyal troops.
uncertain
Iraq → suggest → troops
Saddam Hussein back in 1991 had famously taunted the U.S.-led Coalition about engaging in "the mother of all battles," which, of course, turned out to be the airpower-led victory of Operation Desert Storm.
asserted
which → taunt → Storm
Trump’s decision to bring up the MOAB is all about keeping military pressure on the IRGC as the U.S. naval blockade squeezes their oil revenue.
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blockade → bring → revenue
The MOAB would be an intimidation weapon for knocking out military targets.
asserted
MOAB → knock → targets
IRGC commanders would face major losses.
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commanders → face → losses
And it’s also a reminder that the U.S. can carry out any military strike deemed necessary, to prevent Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon and stop their terrorism.
asserted
U.S. → ’ → terrorism
The Aporia
