The U.S. Air Force’s B-1 bombers left RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on Sunday, a week after British counter-terrorism police arrested five men near the base. The Pentagon confirmed the move only once it was done. “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 redeployed to their home stations in the United States,” a Pentagon spokesperson said, in a statement reported by Al Jazeera and the PA news agency.
Roughly a dozen B-1s had been stationed at Fairford, which U.S. bombers have used during the war with Iran that began on Feb. 28. The Pentagon did not say why they left. The New York Times, citing two unnamed U.S. officials, reported that all 12 were withdrawn quickly after new warnings of a suspected Iran-backed plot, according to The National Desk, in a report published by ABC45. That account has not been confirmed on the record.
What the police have put on the record
Counter Terrorism Policing has published a series of updates, and they set out what is established so far.
At 12:45 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 27, police received reports of three vehicles travelling towards the airbase, including a call from a member of the public. Armed officers arrested five men in the nearby village of Whelford on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and of preparing a terrorist act under section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. Police listed them as UK nationals aged 23 to 25, all London residents.
The vehicles were examined with the help of military assets and forensic experts. “No improvised explosive devices were found,” Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of national counter-terrorism policing, said on Sept. 29. “However, a quantity of petrol was recovered.” The five were released on police bail on Sept. 28 and remain under investigation. Taylor said he understood the release had surprised many people but that it was “an investigative decision.”
On Oct. 1, police arrested a sixth man, a 25-year-old dual UK-Iranian national, in Westminster on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. He was released on bail on Oct. 3. Police corrected their own statement that evening: it had first given his age as 27 and said a second man had been questioned under caution, which police said was not correct.
“We’re looking at all possible angles – including possible foreign state involvement,” Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans, the senior national coordinator for counter-terrorism policing, said on Oct. 1. No one has been charged.
Who has pointed at Iran
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said there were strong indications that Iran played a part, without giving details, PA and Al Jazeera reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel had given Britain intelligence about what he called an Iranian-sponsored attack, according to PA. Iran has denied involvement, Al Jazeera and ABC45 reported, and Al Jazeera reported that Tehran summoned the British ambassador over the arrests.
None of those statements has been matched by a police finding. The police updates speak of “possible foreign state involvement” and do not name a country.
Why Fairford mattered
Former Prime Minister Keir Starmer gave the United States permission to use British bases for what he called “defensive” strikes against Iran, and Fairford has hosted U.S. bombers since the war’s opening days, PA reported. Iran had previously warned that bases used to launch attacks on its territory could be treated as legitimate targets, ABC45 reported.
The Pentagon’s statement said U.S. bombers can still strike “anywhere, anytime,” including on missions that launch and recover from the continental United States. This story is developing.
U.S. Bombers Quit RAF Fairford. What Police Have Confirmed
Primary source: Counter Terrorism Policing, updates on the RAF Fairford investigation, Sept. 28–29, 2026.
Sources
- Counter Terrorism Policing: Update, 12:30 Sept. 28, 2026. Used for: time and place of the arrests, the five men’s ages and nationality, the offences.
- Counter Terrorism Policing: Updates, Sept. 28–29, 2026. Used for: the public’s call, no explosive devices, petrol recovered, the bail decision.
- Counter Terrorism Policing: Update, Oct. 1, 2026. Used for: the sixth arrest, Vicki Evans’s statement, the correction.
- Counter Terrorism Policing: Man bailed in RAF Fairford investigation (Oct. 3, 2026).
- Al Jazeera: US withdraws B-1 bomber aircraft from UK’s Fairford base amid Iran fears (Oct. 4, 2026). Used for: the Pentagon statement, Burnham, Iran’s denial and summoning of the ambassador.
- ITV News, from PA: US withdraws bombers from RAF Fairford after suspected terror plot (Oct. 4, 2026). Used for: the Pentagon statement, Burnham, Netanyahu, Starmer’s permission. The same PA report ran in The Irish Times.
- ABC45 (The National Desk): US Air Force pulls B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford (Oct. 4, 2026). Used for: U.S. European Command’s confirmation, The New York Times’ report, Iran’s earlier warning.