First developed during the Cold War to counter American strategic bombers, the Tu-160 remains the largest and heaviest combat aircraft ever built, the fastest operational bomber in the world, and one of the most heavily armed aircraft ever placed into service.
—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
23 June 2026
Neither Diego Garcia nor Fairford, the key forward operating base for US strategic bombers in Europe, was used in last June’s one-time B-2 bomber strike on Iranian nuclear sites.
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