US Preparing Strike on Iranian Nuclear Facilities Using Pentagon’s Largest Bomb

WASHINGTON — The United States is reportedly preparing a new plan to attack Iran that includes using the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB), the Pentagon’s largest non-nuclear bomb, CNN reported on Thursday (15 October 2026). Citing several US officials, CNN said the MOAB could be used to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities, including Pickaxe Mountain.

Another source said the plan described the attack as an “opening before the US withdrawal from the CENTCOM AOR (area of responsibility)”, suggesting that the US might strike Iran and then quickly withdraw its forces from the region.

Several advisers to US President Donald Trump also told CNN that, despite Trump’s claim that he would take no further action against Iran before the US midterm elections, it remained unclear whether he would change his decision before election day on 3 November.

Deploying the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US arsenal would mark a significant escalation in the conflict. However, officials familiar with the military plan said questions remained about whether it would help achieve Washington’s strategic aims in Iran. According to several sources, the MOAB might still be unable to penetrate deep underground, where Iranian nuclear facilities such as Pickaxe Mountain are believed to be located.

“The MOAB is a powerful weapon for massive area clearance, nothing more,” one source told CNN.

“[The MOAB] was not designed as a warhead capable of penetrating the ground.”

Another source said Washington’s main reason for considering the MOAB in the current scenario was to create a psychological effect in Iran. “POTUS [Trump] has unfortunately put himself in a position where he is almost compelled to do something and, without munitions designed to penetrate that deeply … you have to look at the psychological effect, where the MOAB is a capable bomb,” the source said.