Pentagon withdraws all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford after security incident

Following a suspected terrorist plot targeting the UK's Fairford airbase, the US Air Force withdrew all its B-1 planes from the site.

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon confirmed reports Sunday that the United States has withdrawn all B-1 bomber planes from Royal Air Force Fairford, the UK airbase where a suspicious incident triggered nearby evacuations. A statement from a Pentagon official said "we can acknowledge now that all U.S. bombers that were deployed to RAF Fairford have re-deployed to their home stations in the United States." The statement noted that "operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in real-time." Police were called to the base in southwest England last Sunday after a local farmer reported a group of men with several vans engaged in "suspicious" activity. The scare forced evacuations at 85 homes near the airbase, which was used to launch strikes on Iran. Speculation about the motives behind the incident ranged from terror threat to fuel thievery, as energy prices in the U.K. hit record highs this week. Investigators said they did not find any explosives in the vans, but instead "a quantity of petrol was recovered," National Counter Terrorism Policing head Lawren

The Pentagon is withdrawing all of its B-1 bombers from the RAF Fairford airbase in the U.K. The move, categorized by two officials as quick or rushed, comes just days after five men were arrested for a suspected terror plot involving vans containing explosives parked near the perimeter of the base. NBC News’ Julie Tsirkin reports.

The Pentagon pulled all 12 B-1 bombers this weekend from the U.K.’s RAF Fairford air base to their home stations in the U.S. weeks after an alleged terror threat against a U.S.-operated post in England. “While operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in real-time, we can acknowledge now...

The Pentagon confirmed on Sunday that all US B-1 bombers deployed to Britain’s RAF Fairford had returned home following a security incident that prompted nearby evacuations. Police found no explosives after reports of suspicious activity at the base last Sunday. Five London-based British men arrested were subsequently released on bail.