On October 6th, 2001, six B-2 stealth bombers took off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, to begin the first strikes of Operation Enduring Freedom on the night of October 7th. This sortie would end up being the longest bombing mission in history. The quickest path to Afghanistan was initially considered to be requesting Russia permit American stealth bombers to fly over their airspace, but after recognizing it wouldn't be feasible, President George W. Bush agreed on the Pacific route. The stealth bombers got five refuelings from aircraft tankers to travel this 15,000-mile route. Over the coast of California was the first refueling, and over Hawaii was the second. The third refueling happened over Guam, the fourth was carried out over the Malacca Straits, and the fifth and final one was done over Diego Garcia, and then B-2s struck their targets in Afghanistan. Although the mission was completed, the leed B-2, the spirit of America, was not done yet, and its engines remained running when it landed at Diego Garcia. B-2 resumed flight after 45 minutes of maintenance, and by the time it arrived in Missouri, it had been flying for more than 70 hours straight!
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