US pulls all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford over threat

The Pentagon confirmed on Sunday that it had removed all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford, the British air base in Gloucestershire, and sent them back to their home stations in America. The withdrawal followed a major incident on 27 September, when police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles near the airbase, and a threat that US commanders received about an Iran-backed plot.bbc.com

The removal matters because RAF Fairford is the only airbase on the British mainland authorised for American heavy bomber strike operations, lying about 150km west of London. Its geographic value was a shorter route to the Middle East. Flying B-1 and B-52 sorties from bases such as those in South Dakota now requires longer transatlantic transits and greater reliance on aerial refuelling, raising the cost of striking Iran.theweek.in

What the Pentagon confirmed

Counter Terrorism Policing is investigating a major incident at RAF Fairford on 27 September, when police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles near the base. A farmer near the village of Whelford told police he had found three white vans blocking a road and had seen a group of masked men leaving the area. Police evacuated 85 homes and used bomb disposal robots to examine the vehicles, recovering petrol but no improvised explosive devices.

Six men have been arrested on suspicion of terror offences. Five men aged between 23 and 25, all UK nationals from London, were arrested in the early hours after vehicles were reported travelling towards the base, initially on suspicion of explosives offences and later of preparing a terrorist act. A sixth man, aged 25, a UK-Iranian national, was arrested in London on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts. All six have been released on bail.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said there were strong indications that Iran had played a part in the incident, without providing further details, and Tehran has strongly denied any involvement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the incident clearly involved the hands of a foreign actor. American, British and Israeli assessments reportedly link the plan to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or a related command, with explosives or drones among the options considered.

The 27 September incident

Western intelligence agencies had issued general warnings about Fairford around three weeks earlier, and within a single day the information became more specific and suggested an active plot. US commanders had received new threats about an Iran-backed plot, according to two US officials, and that officials acted quickly after specific details emerged in the past 24 hours. Several B-1s and their crews left while refuelling tankers were still being arranged for the Atlantic crossing.

The withdrawal sits inside wider friction over British defence spending. London has yet to outline a path to meet the NATO standard of spending 3.5% of GDP on defence by 2035, up from its current level of around 2.7%. The Trump administration is also angry that the U.K. didn't send warships to the Middle East to help with the American blockade of Iranian shipping, and Britain has been shut out of a subgroup convened by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby.

Whitehall officials confirmed that in relation to the threats they are dealing with an ongoing high tempo of threat from Iran to the UK, and that it is logical that US airbases would be high on any targeting list. They have not disputed that the decision from Washington was in response to the incident.

Where the bombers went

Defence officials maintain that strike capability is unaffected and that B-1, B-2 and B-52 units will operate directly from the continental United States, though Ezra Cohen, who served as a defence official under Trump's first administration, said the decision raises the cost of striking Iran because aircraft will now fly from the US or another base in Europe. Israeli officials have advised Germany that Ramstein and Spangdahlem air bases face a higher level of threat.

In May, the U.K. raised its terrorism threat level to severe, meaning a terrorist attack is highly likely, after MI5 said the U.K. had been experiencing a gradual increase in terrorist threats for some time, including from hostile states like Iran. In July, Iran said any base used for aggression against Iranian territory constitutes a legitimate target for its forces.

Washington is adjusting its naval posture to compensate. The USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Makin Island amphibious ready group, carrying more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines, have been directed to the region, and officials say three carrier strike groups could be operating there by late October. Trump has indicated that decisions on the next phase of the campaign will come soon.