The B-2 stealth bombers, responsible for the recent attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, are shrouded in secrecy, with very few glimpses ever shown of their interiors.
Only a select few have been granted access to the cockpit of these aircraft, where B-2 Spirit pilots undergo training for their classified bombing missions.
In 2019, documentary filmmaker Jeff Bolton was granted the rare opportunity to step inside a B-2 bomber as it departed from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. This marked the first time a civilian journalist was allowed inside the aircraft.
Whiteman Air Force Base, the B-2 fleet’s home, was the starting point for the seven bombers that carried out the 37-hour mission to strike Iran’s Fordow nuclear enrichment facility.
A video from Bolton’s experience inside the B-2 showcases the pilot’s precision flying over US airspace, with the filmmaker capturing the intricate dashboard of the aircraft.
Bolton’s footage is reminiscent of a 1997 PBS episode featuring the late Huell Howser, where viewers were given a rare glimpse inside a B-2 bomber.
During the episode, Howser expressed amazement at the aircraft’s size, especially the cramped cockpit that barely accommodated him and the pilots he interviewed.
Despite allowing Howser inside the plane, the military kept the dashboard turned off and the windshield covered for security reasons, emphasizing the B-2’s need for secrecy.
Originally designed to penetrate Soviet airspace and deliver nuclear bombs, the B-2 bombers became operational in 1997, with each aircraft costing over $2 billion.
The US Air Force’s fleet of 19 B-2 bombers is the only one capable of deploying the 15-ton GBU-57 bunker buster bombs, essential for penetrating the Fordow nuclear facility buried deep under a mountain.
