
"The fact that these B-52s are now flying over Iran is clear evidence that we have air superiority — and even air dominance over parts of Iran," Gunzinger said.
Gunzinger said that level of control allows U.S. forces to operate more freely over Iran, including remaining over the battlefield and striking targets as they emerge rather than relying solely on pre-planned, long-range attacks.
While U.S. officials have emphasized growing control of the skies, air superiority does not eliminate all threats. Iran still retains missile and drone capabilities, and has relied on asymmetric tactics throughout the conflict to continue attacks despite losses to its air defenses.
Early in the campaign, B-52s fired long-range cruise missiles from outside Iranian airspace. More recently, bombers operating from U.S.-operated UK base Royal Air Force Fairford have been seen carrying precision-guided bombs — a shift that reflects growing U.S. control of the skies and the move toward closer-range strikes.
"B-52s flying in Iran’s airspace shows America’s complete air dominance — and guaranteed, there are also F-22s and F-35s at high altitude on overwatch," Rebecca Grant, a military analyst, told Fox News Digital. "They bring the big bomb payload for direct attacks on Iran’s drone and missile factories, plus underground targets."
The latest development signals the U.S. has moved beyond the initial phase of degrading Iran’s air defenses and is now able to operate more freely inside the country’s airspace, allowing for sustained, higher-volume strikes as the campaign enters a potentially more intense phase.
The expanded freedom of action could become more important as the campaign enters what Trump has described as its final phase, with U.S. officials signaling that strikes could intensify in the coming weeks.
"If you really want to devastate Iran’s ability to continue to launch missiles and drones, you would want to use bombers to do that," Gunzinger said.
Source: Excerpt from Fox interview with Mark Gunzinger, a retired Air Force colonel and former B-52 command pilot