The US military has withdrawn its entire contingent of B-1B Lancer bombers from RAF Fairford in the United Kingdom following new Iranian-related security concerns over the strategic air base.
All US long-range bombers based at the Gloucestershire base returned to their home stations in the US on Sunday 4 October. At least a dozen B-1B Lancers are believed to have been stationed there before their departure.
The move comes as British anti-terrorism police are investigating suspicious activity near the Royal Air Force station and there are reports that US commanders have received new information about a possible threat from Iran.
A Pentagon official confirmed that all bombers had been withdrawn. Aircraft tracking services recorded the B-1s leaving the base. “We can now acknowledge that all US bombers that were based at RAF Fairford have been redeployed to their home stations in the United States,” the Pentagon official told CNN.
Security fears are increasing
The plane reportedly departed so quickly that aerial refueling tankers were still being organized to support its flights across the Atlantic. According to the BBC, the withdrawal came after an incident near RAF Fairford on Sunday September 27th. At that time, the police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles that were traveling near the facility.
Five British citizens between the ages of 23 and 25 were initially arrested on suspicion of explosives offences. The police then investigated her on suspicion of preparing a terrorist attack and released her on bail.
Photo credit: US Air Force / Wikimedia commons
Authorities later arrested a sixth suspect in London, a 25-year-old British-Iranian national. He was also released on bail as the investigation continued. British officials have pointed to an increased threat from Iran but have not publicly linked Tehran to the RAF Fairford incident. However, Iran has denied involvement.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham suggested that Iran may have played a role in the incident. “We will say more in due course, but we can confirm our belief that we believe Iran played a role,” he said. The Pentagon reportedly ordered the move at an operational military level rather than through a political decision.
Ensure the safety of US bombers
RAF Fairford is a major US Air Force operating base in Europe. It hosted B-1B Lancers and B-52 Stratofortress bombers and supported numerous U.S. operations in Europe and the Middle East.
Ezra Cohen, a former defense official under Trump’s first administration, supported the decision to remove the bombers from the base. “The B-1 bomber is a strategic asset, and we will take measures to protect it from all possible threats,” emphasized Cohen.
Meanwhile, during an interview with Fox News on September 29, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged possible foreign involvement in the alleged conspiracy. However, he declined to name who might be responsible. “This clearly involves the hand of a foreign actor, I won’t go into that yet,” he said.
Although no longer in production, the B-1B supersonic bomber is one of the most powerful long-range bombers in the US Air Force. The jet can reach speeds of over 900 miles per hour (mph) and carry up to 75,000 pounds of conventional weapons. This makes it the largest conventional payload capacity in the US Air Force fleet.
