The US Air Force has operational missiles that could take out the electronics of Iran's nuclear facilities using high-power microwaves, the Daily Mail reported.
The microwave weapons equipped with an electromagnetic pulse cannon are fitted into cruise missiles and can be delivered from B-52 bombers.
Boasting a range of 700 miles (around 1,126 km), the weapons can ostensibly infiltrate enemy airspace at low altitude and target electronic devices with pulses of high power microwave (HPM) energy. Specifically, the microwave weapon is said to generate a concentrated beam of energy aimed at generating a voltage surge in electronic equipment, thus disabling it. These missiles are allegedly designed to leave civilians unharmed.
According to the report, the top secret Counter-Electronics High Power Microwave Advanced Missile Project (CHAMP) was the brainchild of Boeing's Phantom Works, and was commissioned by the US Air Force Research Laboratory. Since being tested in 2012, the microwave weapons have purportedly been deployed and are operational at various locations across the globe.
The outlet cited Othana Zuch, a US Air Force Research Laboratory public affairs officer, as saying that CHAMP missiles were originally a demonstration program, followed up by development of “advanced HPEM (High Power Electromagnetic) technologies.”
The publication also recalled that Mary Lou Robinson, formerly head of the High Power Microwave Division Air Force Research Lab at US Kirtland Air Force Base, spoke as far back as in 2016 about the CHAMP missiles, alleging that they were operational.
“Directed energy, high powered microwave, low-cost interceptors is where we want to be,” said US Army Major General Sean Gainey last year at a meeting of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank funded by contributions from military contractors. A year before, Gainey, the head of the Army's Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office, stated that the US military was exploring using high-powered microwave technology to counter swarms of armed drones on the battlefield.
As for the new report, it comes amid the latest dramatic escalation of tensions in the Middle East, with Israel carrying out an airstrike against Iran on Friday in response to Tehran's missile and drone attack over the weekend. Israel fired three air-launched ballistic missiles during the attack on Iran, NBC News reported, citing officials.
As a result of the “limited” retaliatory strike on sites in Iran, explosions were reported near the city of Isfahan. Tasnim reported that the nuclear facilities in Isfahan province are completely safe. Three Iranian officials confirmed to The New York Times that the strikes targeted an Iranian Air Force base near Isfahan. According to Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the drones shot down over Isfahan did not cause any damage.