US Air Force Withdraws All Bombers From British Base After Foiled Iran-Linked Terror Plot
Key Takeaways
- •The U.S. Air Force has redeployed its B-52 and B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford in England back to their home bases in the United States.
- •The withdrawal followed a security investigation in which six people, including a dual British-Iranian national arrested in London, were detained and released on bail over an alleged terror plot.
- •British authorities have linked the plot to Tehran, which denies involvement but considers any base used to attack Iranian territory a legitimate target.
- •President Trump is still weighing potential new strikes on Iran despite earlier assurances that the campaign would last only a matter of weeks.
- •The USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier and an amphibious readiness group carrying more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines are heading to the region, potentially bringing the number of carriers there to three by the end of October.
The U.S. Air Force has withdrawn its bombers from RAF Fairford, the U.S.-run military air base in England used to launch strikes on Iran, following an investigation into a planned terror attack at the installation.
The aircraft were redeployed to their home bases in the United States, according to a Pentagon official who was not authorized to discuss sensitive military movements and spoke Sunday on condition of anonymity.
Aviation watchers, including the Military Air Tracking Alliance, had tracked dozens of B-52 and B-1 bombers operating out of RAF Fairford since the opening days of the Iran war. On Sunday, observers noted a host of B-1 bombers departing the base.
The withdrawal comes as President Donald Trump weighs his options in the war on Iran — including potential new strikes — despite initial assurances to Americans that the campaign would last only a matter of weeks.
“We have decisions that I’ll make about Iran. Iran’s been decimated. So the only question is — it’ll either be the easy way, or the hard way,” Trump told reporters Saturday as he left the White House for a rally in Ohio.
The security concerns at Fairford surfaced in late September, when a security incident was reported at the base. Last week, a dual British-Iranian national was arrested in central London on suspicion of plotting a terror attack. In total, six people have been taken into custody and then released on bail during the investigation.
British authorities have linked the incident to Tehran. Iran has denied involvement, but has previously stated that it considers any base used to attack its territory a legitimate target — a stance that bears directly on RAF Fairford, which was used to launch strikes on Iran.
U.K. officials say proxies linked to Iran have been behind a string of arson and other attacks in Britain and other countries, many of them aimed at the Jewish community and intended to sow fear. They have previously warned that Tehran could broaden its targets in the U.K. if conflicts in the Middle East continue.
RAF Fairford, situated 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of London, has hosted American bombers through decades of conflict in the Middle East. For now, the base is without the B-52 and B-1 bombers that had operated from its runways since the opening days of the Iran war — a visible shift in the American air presence in Britain.
Despite the redeployment, the U.S. military still maintains a sizable presence in the region. On Thursday, a U.S. official said the recently deployed USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier, along with the USS Malkin Island amphibious readiness group — a group of ships that together carry more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines — is heading for the region. The official said the movement could bring the number of carriers in the region to three as early as the end of October.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.
