The United States Air Force abruptly withdrew all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford in England following an investigation into a suspected terror plot targeting the facility, according to Pentagon officials speaking Sunday.
Bombers Return Stateside from UK Base
The aircraft have redeployed back to their home stations in the United States, ending a months-long deployment where roughly a dozen heavy bombers operated out of the Gloucestershire base to strike Iran.
Aviation watchers from the Military Air Tracking Alliance observed the B-1 bombers taking off from the UK installation on Sunday, according to reports. While operational security initially precluded real-time confirmation, a Pentagon spokesperson confirmed that all US bombers deployed to the base had returned stateside.
The base itself, situated roughly 100 miles west of London, has served as a forward operating location for US Air Force bombers for decades. Following a formal agreement struck in March after the Iran war began on February 28, the UK government granted defensive access to installations including Fairford and RAF Diego Garcia.
From there, American crews flew long missions armed with precision-guided bunker-busting bombs and air-to-surface missiles against hardened targets deep inside Iran.
Pentagon officials have stressed that American strategic bombing forces retain full capability to execute missions anywhere and at any time directly from the continental United States. The Department of War previously maintained roughly a dozen B-1 Lancers at the facility to launch rapid aerial operations against Iranian targets.
Police Arrest Six Men After Security Incident
The sudden departure of the strategic fleet follows a major security alert on September 27. Police received an emergency call regarding three suspicious vehicles traveling toward the airfield in the early morning hours, prompting armed officers and army bomb-disposal experts to sweep the rural area and evacuate scores of residents near the base in Whelford.
Local residents spotted suspicious vans carrying masked men wearing balaclavas along country lanes, according to reports detailing the initial tip. Law enforcement officials later recovered quantities of gasoline to serve as an accelerant in three vans linked to the suspects, though no improvised explosives were found.
British authorities initially arrested five men, all British nationals in their 20s from London, on suspicion of plotting to plant explosives near the base before holding them for preparing a terrorist act. On Thursday, counterterrorism police arrested a sixth man—a dual British-Iranian national—in London on similar terrorism preparation charges.
Metropolitan Police counterterrorism senior national coordinator Vicki Evans noted that authorities established a 400-meter cordon surrounding the three suspicious vehicles while army specialists conducted examinations. Local residents in Gloucestershire were instructed to follow ongoing safety guidance as the complex police operation unfolded.
Officials Clash Over Bail and Iran Links
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that there were strong indications that Iran played a part in the incident, echoing assessments from Washington. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the incident clearly involve[d] the hands of a foreign actor
. Tehran has strongly denied any involvement in the plot, dismissing accusations as fabricated propaganda designed to fuel animosity.
Controversy quickly erupted after British police released all six suspects on bail during the ongoing inquiry. US President Donald Trump voiced sharp criticism of the release, noting that the suspects were looking to do big damage to our fort and adding that he personally would not have granted them bail.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio further remarked that numerous individuals felt disturbed by the decision to release the suspects. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel had provided prior warnings to the United Kingdom regarding an imminent state-sponsored attack originating from Iran
.
