KNOB NOSTER, Mo. (AP) — The B-2 stealth bombers that dropped massive bunker-buster bombs on Iranian nuclear facilities began returning to their U.S. base in Missouri on Sunday.
An Associated Press journalist watched on a clear but windy afternoon as seven of the B-2 Spirit bombers came in for landing at Whiteman Air Force Base. The base, about 73 miles (117 kilometers) southeast of Kansas City, is home to the 509th Bomb Wing, the only U.S. military unit that operates the B-2 Spirit bombers.
The first group of four of the stealth aircraft did a loop around the base before approaching a runway from the north, while a final group of three arrived within 10 minutes.
The day before, the B-2s had been part of a wide-ranging plan involving deception and decoys to deliver what American military leaders believe is a knockout blow to a nuclear program that Israel views as an existential threat and has been pummeling for more than a week.
According to U.S. officials, one group of the stealth aircraft headed west from the base in the U.S. heartland on Saturday, intended as a decoy to throw off the Iranians.
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