President Donald Trump confirmed the US removed approximately a dozen B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire because of "some threats" to the base, speaking to reporters on Monday as he departed for Nebraska.
The Pentagon confirmed the withdrawal on Sunday. Trump said the aircraft had not left "by accident" and that Washington "actually knows the people that made the threat", but he did not identify them. He added the US preferred to "move them around a little bit" rather than leave them exposed.
The exact nature of the threat remains unclassified. US media outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Axios reported, citing unnamed officials, that the potential attack may have been designed to target the aircraft and kill personnel. Washington-based sources speculated to the BBC the threat might have involved sabotage or strikes in the event of resumed hostilities with Iran. One White House source referenced Ukraine's Operation Spiderweb, a covert drone attack on five Russian bases in June 2024, as an example of what an adversary could accomplish.
The bomber withdrawal follows an incident on 27 September when police investigated three suspicious vehicles near the base. Counter-terror police arrested six men on suspicion of terror offences. Five were subsequently released on bail. A sixth man, identified as a UK-Iranian national, was also arrested and released on bail. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said there were "strong indications" Iran was involved, without providing details. Tehran has denied involvement.
Vice President JD Vance said the bombers were moved out of "an abundance of caution", asserting Iran had engaged in "acts of terrorism against the US" for 49 years. Secretary of State Marco Rubio took a more cautious stance, describing the removal as a routine asset rotation "not unusual" in military operations and declining to directly link it to the 27 September incident. Rubio said the US retained full confidence in the security of its bases and praised British authorities' cooperation.
RAF Fairford, in use by US air forces for decades, recently hosted B-1 and B-52 bombers conducting operations over the Middle East after the UK approved US requests for defensive strikes on Iran. Christoph Bergs, research analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, told Reuters the redeployment would reduce US capacity to rapidly surge sorties against Iran.