[News] Iran studied US airstrike tactics; extracted missiles, launchers

[Anti-Imperialist News]

english.almayadeen.net
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-studied-us-airstrike-tactics--rebuilt-sites-during-ceas>
Iran studied US airstrike tactics; extracted missiles, launchers: NYT
Al Mayadeen English
May 19, 2026
------------------------------

A senior US military official says Iran analyzed American fighter jet
flight patterns and used the ceasefire period to restore missile launch
capabilities.

   - [image: A girl walks past missiles displayed in the National Aerospace
   Park of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, just outside Tehran, Iran,
   Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025 (AP)]
   <https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2026/5/19/cd733eae-098c-4946-9369-8cbf979c4731.jpg?width=1000>
   A girl walks past missiles displayed in the National Aerospace Park of the
   Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, just outside Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Nov.
   13, 2025 (*AP*)

Iran successfully studied the flight patterns
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-inflicted-severe-defeat--strategic-setbacks-on--israel>
of American fighter jets and bombers, allowing it to defend more
effectively against US airstrikes, The New York Times reported, citing a
senior US military official.

Tehran also used a period of ceasefire to extract missiles and launchers
from previously bombed positions, the official added.

According to the official, Iranian commanders, possibly with Russian
assistance, analyzed the flight patterns of US fighter jets and bombers
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/us-war-on-iran-costs-exceed--85bln--3-times-higher-than-expe>,
including aircraft involved in recent strikes.

The official warned that the downing of an F-15E fighter jet last month,
along with ground fire directed at an F-35, revealed that US aerial tactics
have become highly predictable
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/no-force-can-open-strait-of-hormuz-without-iran-approval--re>,
enabling Iran to mount more efficient defenses.
Iran recovers ballistic missile sites

On Iran’s missile capabilities, the US official stated that Tehran exploited
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-serious-with-diplomacy--prepared-to-defend-itself--arag>
the ceasefire to clear dozens of ballistic missile sites that had been
bombed and to reposition mobile launch platforms. Despite sustaining
losses, Iran has adjusted its tactics in anticipation of any renewed
strikes.

The official noted that many of Iran’s ballistic missiles were launched
from deep underground caves and facilities carved into granite mountains
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran-warns-enemies-against--miscalculation---vows-stronger-r>,
structures that US attack aircraft find difficult to destroy.

As a result, the United States primarily bombed the entrances to these
sites, causing collapses and burials but not full destruction, and then
Iran excavated a significant number of those sites, the official told the
*NYT.*

Asked about the overall impact of the war on Tehran
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/trump-halts-iran-attack-at-gulf-leaders--request--warns-assa>,
the official said, “Although five weeks of intense bombing killed many
Iranian commanders and leaders, the war has left a tougher and more
resilient adversary.”

The official added that the Iranians have redeployed
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/64--of-americans-believe-trump-was-wrong-to-wage-war-on-iran>
much of their remaining weaponry and have developed a strengthened belief
that their country can successfully resist the United States, whether by
effectively shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, attacking energy
infrastructure in neighboring Gulf states, or threatening American aircraft.
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