The U.S. Air Force has withdrawn its bombers from RAF Fairford, a U.S.-operated military base in England that has been used in strikes against Iran, following an investigation into an alleged terror plot targeting the facility.
The aircraft have been returned to their bases in the United States, according to a Pentagon official who spoke Sunday on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss sensitive military movements.
Military Air Tracking Alliance and other aviation watchers had tracked dozens of B-52 and B-1 bombers operating from RAF Fairford since the Iran war began. Observers reported seeing a large number of B-1 bombers leave the base on Sunday.
The redeployment comes as President Donald Trump considers his next steps in the conflict with Iran, including the possibility of additional strikes. That uncertainty follows his initial assurances that the military 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 departed the White House for a rally in Ohio.
A dual British-Iranian citizen was arrested in central London last week on suspicion of planning a terror attack. The arrest followed a security incident at RAF Fairford in late September. Six people in all have been detained and later released on bail as part of the investigation.
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British authorities have connected the incident to Tehran. Iran has rejected any involvement, although it has previously said that bases used to launch attacks on Iranian territory would be considered legitimate targets.
U.K. officials say Iran-linked proxies have carried out a series of arson attacks and other operations in Britain and elsewhere. Many of those incidents have targeted Jewish communities and sought to spread fear. British authorities have also warned that Tehran could widen its targets in the U.K. if fighting in the Middle East persists.
RAF Fairford is about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of London. American bombers have used the base during conflicts in the Middle East for decades.
The United States continues to maintain a substantial military presence in the Middle East. A U.S. official said Thursday that the recently deployed USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier and the USS Makin Island amphibious readiness group were heading toward the region. Together, the ships carry more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines. The official said the deployment could bring the number of U.S. carriers in the region to three by the end of October.
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