The latest:
US military refueling aircraft and tilt-rotor Ospreys left RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk on Monday after a threat tied to Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported. A person familiar with the underlying intelligence told CNN the threat was assessed as credible. A US official described the aircraft movement as a temporary relocation and declined to discuss any threat.
Details:
- The flights: Sky News reported nine KC-135 tankers and three V-22 Ospreys departed Mildenhall on Monday afternoon and evening. CNN’s analysis of flight-tracking data counted ten tankers: four to Spangdahlem and one to Ramstein in Germany, four to Morón in Spain, and one to Glasgow Prestwick in Scotland. The Ospreys moved only to nearby RAF Lakenheath.
- Alert level: Washington raised force protection at both Mildenhall and Lakenheath to FPCON Charlie, the second-highest tier on the Pentagon’s scale, according to the Wall Street Journal and defense outlet The War Zone citing a US official. The level is triggered when intelligence points to a probable terrorist act or military targeting.
- The intelligence: The source familiar with the material told CNN the US intelligence community has tracked a wide range of plots discussed by Iranians against American targets in recent weeks, spanning drone attacks on bases and assassination attempts, and said: “The Iranians clearly had specific targets and methods in mind.”
- Open questions: The Wall Street Journal reported the precise nature of the threat remains under discussion among US officials. It is unclear whether Iran possesses the capability to carry out the threats, and the source said several were also directed at targets inside the United States.
- US Command response: US European Command said aircraft rotate between installations and operating locations for varied reasons including training and real-world requirements, and that operational security prevented further detail on asset movements.
- London’s position: Britain’s Ministry of Defence said it does not routinely comment on the activities of other nations, adding that aircraft and other assets move regularly in line with operational requirements. Cabinet minister Lucy Powell told Sky News the government keeps base security under continuous review and acts firmly and quickly when needed.
- The Fairford case: Police arrested five men in the early hours of 27 September near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, used by US B-1B bombers to strike Iran during the war, after a farmer reported three white vans and a group of men, some masked. The US withdrew all 12 B-1B bombers from Fairford on 4 October.
- The charges: Two men were charged last month under the National Security Act. Prosecutors said one, a dual British-Iranian national, arranged the pair’s arrival at the base on the instructions of a man known only as Ali, and accused him of assisting a foreign intelligence service that police believe is Iran. Six others remain on bail.
- Iran’s denial: Iran’s ambassador in London denied any involvement in the Fairford incident. Mayor Andy Burnham said the plot was almost certainly orchestrated by the Revolutionary Guard, which warned Britain in July that Fairford and any base used to attack Iran would be a legitimate target.
Background:
RAF Fairford hosted the US B-1B bombers used in strikes on Iran during the war. Mildenhall is the US Air Force’s main European aerial refueling hub, and Lakenheath hosts American fighter squadrons, making both central to US operations across Europe and the Middle East.
Between the lines:
Two separate signals point the same way: the aircraft left, and the alert level at two bases rose to the tier reserved for probable targeting. Neither Washington nor London has publicly tied Monday’s move to Iran, with both offering routine-movement language, yet the FPCON Charlie designation and the pending Fairford prosecutions sit alongside the Revolutionary Guard’s July warning naming UK bases as legitimate targets.
What’s next
Watch whether the KC-135s return to Mildenhall from Germany and Spain, whether FPCON Charlie is lowered at either base, and the next court dates for the two men charged under the National Security Act.
