Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Mar 2: The United States on Monday revealed extensive details of “Operation Epic Fury,” describing it as a massive, synchronised campaign spanning air, sea, cyber and space domains that struck more than 1,000 targets across Iran within the first 24 hours. The operation involved thousands of personnel, carrier strike groups and long-range bombers operating across multiple continents.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General Dan Caine, termed the campaign “the culmination of months and in some cases years of deliberate planning and refinement against this particular target set.” He was speaking at a joint Pentagon press briefing alongside Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
Caine said more than 100 aircraft launched in a single, coordinated wave, including fighters, refuelling tankers, airborne early warning platforms, electronic warfare aircraft, bombers from the continental United States and unmanned systems.
The operation was initiated by United States Central Command at 0115 Eastern Standard Time on February 28 following presidential authorisation. Caine described the opening phase as “a massive, overwhelming attack across all domains of warfare.”
Over the previous month, the Joint Force had systematically repositioned assets and personnel across the region to strengthen deterrence and prepare for potential action. The build-up included thousands of service members from all branches of the military, hundreds of advanced fourth- and fifth-generation fighter aircraft, dozens of refuelling tankers, and the deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike groups with their embarked air wings.
Reserve and National Guard units were also integrated into the mission, including the Wisconsin Army National Guard operating in Kuwait and Iraq and the Vermont Air National Guard’s 158th Fighter Wing, which repositioned F-35A aircraft across the Atlantic in support of the campaign.
Highlighting the logistical effort behind the strikes, Caine stressed that sustained flows of munitions, fuel and supplies were critical to execution.
The campaign combined kinetic operations with cyber and space capabilities. According to Caine, United States Cyber Command and United States Space Command initiated non-kinetic effects aimed at disrupting and degrading Iran’s communication and surveillance capabilities before conventional strikes commenced.
American B-2 Spirit bombers carried out a 37-hour round-trip sortie from the continental United States, delivering precision, penetrating munitions against underground facilities. Over a 57-hour period, the Joint Force launched hundreds of missions from land and sea, delivering tens of thousands of pieces of ordnance.
Defensive systems remained active throughout the operation. US Patriot and THAAD missile defence batteries, along with Navy destroyers equipped for ballistic missile defence, reportedly intercepted hundreds of missiles targeting US forces and regional partners. Allied air defence units in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia also participated in intercept operations.
Caine said the campaign is ongoing, calling it one of the most extensive integrated US air and naval efforts in the Middle East in recent years, blending conventional firepower with cyber and space capabilities in what officials describe as a fully synchronised joint-force operation.