On Saturday, a 747 airfreighter took off from China. Sunday another one took off. On Monday, a 3rd one took off from Shanghai. The planes flew westward over Northern China, then south to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, then disappearing from radar as they neared Iran.
The flight plans confirmed Luxembourg because the vacation spot. The USA has the C-17 and the large C-5A to move army belongings. Different international locations use the 747 airfreighters to do the identical. So the guessing recreation is on as to what was on these planes. My guess could be electronics and missile components.
The 747 cargo planes used had been from Cargolux, based mostly in Luxembourg. Cargolux didn’t reply to questions on what these planes flying out of China had been carrying.
Why would China become involved with this? China is Iran’s largest oil buyer, taking in two million barrels of oil a day. Costs have gone up $10 a barrel on the open market since Israel’s assault on Iran.
China has provided Iran missile elements and on the end of January despatched two container ships filled with rocket gasoline to Iran. On April twenty sixth, it seems that the entire cargo blew up within the port of Bandar Abbas. Killed 57 folks, blew out home windows a mile away, was felt 30 miles away, and incinerated 10,000 transport containers. Why it was nonetheless there after three months is one other thriller. Or an train in stupidity.
What was within the air shipments can be a thriller, however you can make a protected guess it needed to be battle supplies of some kind that wanted to get there quick, or they did not need a ship to be stopped for an inspection someplace on the transport path.
In May, the US sanctioned a number of Chinese language firms serving to Iran’s ballistic missile program.
Simply earlier than the Israeli assault, Iran had ordered up double the quantity of the rocket gasoline that blew up in Bandar Abbas. This will have been one other think about Israel deciding to assault after they did.
Iran mined the Strait of Hormuz in 1987 and 1988, and it’d achieve this, or is doing so now. Shipping companies are being advised to stay close to Oman and UAE and keep away from Iran territorial waters within the 20-mile hole of the strait at its narrowest level.
Transport insurance coverage charges are going up, and tankers carrying 2 million barrels of oil are actually making $50,000 a day as a substitute of $20,000 earlier than Israel’s assault.
Ships are generally navigating blind with GPS jamming and AIS, Computerized Identification System, spoofing happening. It most likely was the reason for two oil tankers colliding simply days in the past. 3,000 ships a month undergo the Strait of Hormuz each month. A fifth of the world’s oil, a 3rd of the pure fuel, and ships with all types of different cargo undergo the strait. If Iran closes it off, it turns into a giant drawback for all, however principally for China, as China takes 90% of Iran’s oil manufacturing.
This digital jamming is already a hazard to navigation within the Strait of Hormuz due to the slim level.
Arab states are worrying about nuclear supplies changing into airborne to their international locations if nuclear amenities with the uranium are hit. Up to now there are not any reviews of contamination from amenities which were hit by Israel. That adjustments if the US hits the Iranian Fordo underground facility with these 30,000 lb GRU-57A/B bombs. Iran’s solely practical nuclear energy plant at Bushehr is nearer to Arab capitals than to Tehran. Shades of Chernobyl if it was hit. Nations with 60 million folks close by rely upon water processed by desalination. If Bushehr was hit, that every one goes away. Similar with fishing. The Qatari Prime Minister mentioned they might run out of water in three days. They’ve no rivers.
These US refueling tankers are headed to the Center East, with F-16, F-22 and F-35 jets dragging, which means getting refueled in flight to journey past their regular vary.
The united statesS. Nimitz plane service and its strike drive are becoming a member of the usS. Carl Vinson and its strike drive add to the firepower. They might wipe out the Iranian Navy, which has left Bandar Abbas, however anchored not far-off and too shut collectively.
Iran did in depth army maneuvers in January and talked about new weapons, with out revealing what they had been.
There’s a good variety of Iranian missiles. How a lot of every they’ve, or have left, is one other query.
The Ayatollah has been posting rather a lot on X. Superb art work, however he isn’t making any headway with this bluff.
He nearly appears like that previous margarine business, “It is not sensible to idiot Mom Nature!” Truly it was “It is not good to idiot Mom Nature,” however you get the thought.
He’s proper that they had been in negotiations with the US, however they hadn’t finished it within the 60 days Trump gave them to make a deal. Now Trump feels justified in no matter he does. First he says they waited too lengthy, then he says he would discuss to them, then he says they’re too late, like “Too Late” Jerome Powell. He did say that whereas the brand new White Home flagpoles had been going up. It is TACO time once more.
Iranian drone amenities could have been focused by Israel together with different army and nuclear websites. It doesn’t matter what, shipments of them to Russia have most certainly stopped. No matter Iran has they should use themselves.
No matter Iranian state TV meant yesterday after they warned of ” a shock tonight that the world will keep in mind for hundreds of years,” did not occur.
Solely Congress has the ability to declare battle, however that will not cease Trump. He does as he rattling nicely pleases. There are payments within the Home and the Senate proper now that particularly say Trump can’t declare battle with Iran. However Home and Senate Committees are too busy enjoying video games to get to them. One in every of them is a privileged decision so it means they should vote on it, in the event that they ever get to it.
If it occurs, it is Donald’s battle. No one else’s. Even Marjorie Taylor Greene says so.
And to provide it a correct New York Publish ending:
