All American bombers stationed at an Air Force base in the United Kingdom to support strikes on Iran have been flown back to the United States after what is alleged to have been an Iran-linked terror threat against the facility.
The Royal Air Force base at Fairford, Gloucestershire, England, which has been a de facto U.S. Air Force forward operating base since the dawn of the Cold War, hit the headlines in the past week over an apparently foiled terror plot against it, has now been emptied of bombers. All 12 of the remaining B-1 ‘Lancer’ heavy bombers that were forward-deployed to strike Iran abruptly flew out of England on Sunday. Their departure was observed by the keen plane-spotting community active around Fairford.
FAIRFORD, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 4: B1 bombers take off as they depart for home at RAF Fairford on October 04, 2026 in Fairford, United Kingdom. (Photo by David Bown/Getty Images)
While Fairford has not hosted American bomber wings full-time since the Cold War, it is very much equipped to do so and has a long, reinforced runway capable of handling the largest and most heavily laden aircraft. This, and its strategic location, makes Fairford invaluable to the U.S. Air Force as a place to forward-deploy U.S.-based aircraft when geopolitical necessity makes having bombers closer to targets in the Middle East valuable.
Given its importance to Washington, the de facto U.S. base RAF Fairford is considered one of the most important military sites in the United Kingdom.
While B-1 bombers can still strike the Middle East from the United States, the reduced distance from forward deployment eases strain on crews and simplifies air refuelling support.
At the peak of Operation Epic Fury, over 20 B-1 bombers were forward deployed at Fairford, and the roar of the aircraft’s afterburning engines became a familiar sound over the South-West of England. This deployment was reduced as the Iran conflict wound down, with 12 remaining in Britain by the end of the summer.
Aircraft rotation went on through this period, and Open Source Intelligence observers note the latest B-1 to deploy to Britain arrived only days ago, underlining the apparently abrupt nature of the decision to withdraw the whole force from Fairford.
The Wall Street Journal cited unnamed Pentagon officials who confirmed the move and are said to have told the paper that the withdrawal was a decision made because of terrorism concerns in the United Kingdom against the Fairford air base. They said: “While operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in real-time, we can acknowledge now that all US bombers that were deployed to RAF Fairford have re-deployed to their home stations in the United States”.
As earlier reported, security at Fairford was noticeably enhanced by Saturday, September 26th, with heavy earth-moving plant parked in front of gates, aircraft dispersed around the site, and the perimeter patrolled by armoured cars, all a clear indication the U.S. and British governments had knowledge of an impending terror plot given the arrests that took place the following day. On the 27th, five UK citizen males were arrested close to the base, having been said to have been seen acting suspiciously in the area in association with three panel vans with signwriting for a fictitious fuel company.
Bomb disposal robots investigated those vehicles but found no explosives. A further arrest took place on Thursday, October 1st, with an Iran-UK dual citizen detained. All six men have since been released on bail, an unusual development that has elicited comment given how strong British counter-terrorism laws are in allowing security police to keep terror suspects detained without charge for prolonged periods, if they so choose.
Despite the apparent lack of a bomb or terrorism charge against the suspects, the U.S. and British governments state it is their understanding that the Fairford base is the target of a major, state-backed terror plot, with Iran fingered as the prime suspect, given the air base’s important role in Operation Epic Fury. The withdrawal of the B-1 bombers on Sunday at least suggests American and British intelligence believe the recent arrests have not reduced the risk to the base meaningfully.
Other U.S. Air Force planes remain in the UK, including the permanently stationed flight of U-2 reconnaissance jets at Fairford, F-15E fighters at RAF Lakenheath and Stratotankers at RAF Mildenhall.