Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth hosts a delegation from the Republic of Korea at the Pentagon in May 2026. Hegseth has overseen US operational codenames during his time as defense chief, with interesting results. (Department of Defense/US Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Carson Croom)

How Does the US Military Come Up with Operation Names, Anyway?

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During World War II, Winston Churchill cautioned that operation codenames should not be “boastful or overconfident.” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth appears to hold a different view.

Even before the United States military launched Operation Epic Fury, several media outlets questioned who chose the names for some recent military operations:

“Operation Rough Rider,” the US campaign to ensure freedom of navigation in the Middle East;

“Operation Midnight Hammer,” last June’s airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear program; and

“Operation Southern Spear,” the narcotic interdiction campaign in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth seems to have selected the names to project a message of lethality, but for many, they have often had the opposite effect. Instead of lethality, the names have evoked widespread mockery, with Internet commentators comparing them to the titles of homoerotic adult films.

What’s in an Operation Name?

Hegseth and company aren’t the first to come up with an operation name that was soon called into question.

One particular incident from the past two decades was Steadfast Jazz 2013, a NATO training exercise that may have concluded with someone saying, “And all that jazz!” 

Other infamous names include the US military’s 1988 intervention in Honduras, dubbed “Operation Golden Pheasant”; World War II’s “Operation Toenails,” the 1943 invasion of New Georgia; and, perhaps most........

© The National Interest