A prominent refrain in memes about the United States is that to explain a complex idea to an American, you have to ask them to imagine a burger.

The nationality stereotype about Americans only being able to grasp international affairs through fast-food analogies or adding the word "freedom" to random terms holds true with the "Freedom Dorito" meme, an affectionate nickname given to the U.S. Air Force's B-2 Spirit bomber.

Many Americans are convinced that the $2 billion stealth aircraft's triangular shape distinctly resembles that of a tortilla chip from snack-food brand Doritos.

After jokes about the "Dorito of Death" first floated around Reddit in 2022, the U.S.'s use of the bomber aircraft in its offensive against Iran's nuclear sites recently has only served to bolster jokes about the Freedom Dorito's flight.

Here's a recap of how one of the deadliest aircraft in modern history got its snack-chip nickname and became the subject of so many memes.

Why Is The B-2 Spirit Called The Freedom Dorito?

The B-2 Spirit bomber, developed in the 1980s by Northrop Grumman, first entered service in 1997 with the U.S. Air Force. The aircraft's sleek, triangular flying wing shape was designed for stealth, but it can also carry both conventional and nuclear payloads with intercontinental range.

The B-2 began appearing more often in public flyovers in recent years, like this September 2022 flyover at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, giving meme-makers ample footage to work with.

The B-2's now-routine public appearances soon began to net jokes comparing it to the popular American snack chip, the Dorito.

Posts highlighting the similarities began gaining traction on Reddit in 2022, when user u/The_Dammed called it a "Death Dorito," prompting Redditor u/SeniorShizzle to post a meme that photoshopped the Doritos packaging onto the aircraft.

The phrase "Freedom Dorito" emerged shortly after, with one Redditor dropping a comment that read, "Freedom dorito go brrrrr" (a reference to the Money Printer Go Brrr meme), in August 2022.

The nickname combined the aircraft's symbolic association with America's military power with the country's well-documented and (often overly patriotic) branding obsession, creating a perfectly stupid-smart internet shorthand.

When Did People Start Posting Memes About 'Freedom Doritos' Flying Over Iran?

The earliest known viral meme about the Freedom Dorito is an August 30th, 2023, TikTok by user @bloodbusa, who wrote, "When Iran says there will be consequences and they wake up to see the freedom dorito overhead." The video showed a couple of chattering, nervous-looking dogs from the "Awkwardly Staring Dogs" meme, garnering over 300,000 views and 24,000 likes.

@bloodbusa Someone wanted to F around and find out i reckon. #Meme #MemeCut #freedom #america #palestinewar #middleeast #military #fortunateson ♬ Fortunate Son – Creedence Clearwater Revival

The meme spread rapidly from there. In October 2023, TikToker @robert__paulson__ declared, "Freedom Dorito inbound," over footage of a B-2, while a March 18th, 2025, tweet from X / Twitter user @Mericamemed declared, "If you can see the freedom Dorito, you are not the target," referencing the plane's stealth capabilities.

If you can see the freedom Dorito, you are not the target pic.twitter.com/ldkj7GfDf3

— MERICA MEMED (@Mericamemed) March 18, 2025

In May 2025, TikToker @alot_ofsnow posted a video of the B-2 Spirit bomber in action, writing, "POV you have a slight disagreement with the United States so they sent the freedom dorito," and gathering over 2 million plays and 300,000 likes in a month.

@alot_ofsnow

the freedom dortio will give you democracy

♬ Careless Whisper – 𝓜𝓪𝓭𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓮

By June 2025, during U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear sites amid the Israel-Iran conflict, Middle Eastern TikToker @realzaytoon's made light of his proximity to the war, writing, "POV: you live in the Middle East and just saw flying dorito over you," gathering over 370,000 plays in three days.

@realzaytoon #fyp #iran #arab ♬ pure imagination – Adonai Michel

What Are Some More Memes About The B-2 Spirit 'Freedom Doritos'?

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7517669687950331150

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7518562111614733582

@neisan212 THE FREEDOM DORITO🔥🗣️🔥🔥🗣️#use #iran #tweet #x #abcxyz #sybau #ww3 #algorithm #aura #aurafarming ♬ som original – 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐙

@professorlopez7018 God Bless Our Troops🇺🇸🦅 #BREAKINGNEWS #TRUMP #IRAN #USA #JUSTJOKES #professorlopez7018 #freedomdorito ♬ original sound – ProfessorLopez

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For the full history of the Freedom Dorito meme, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.