The Gloucestershire police received a call this morning about three ‘suspicious vans’ that appeared to be heading toward the base at RAF Fairford. As you all may remember, that installation – a joint base owned by the British and shared with the United States – has been the source of much controversy since the beginning of the Iran conflict, thanks to then Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s denial of US military assets the right to use it for the operation.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer says he will not allow the United States to use RAF bases, including the strategically critical installations at Diego Garcia and Fairford in Gloucestershire, for an attack on Iran according to reports.
Starmer is wrong, and he is making a strategic and diplomatic mistake. The UK should enable, not hinder, any military action President Donald Trump takes against Iran. It stands to gain considerably if the Iranian regime is weakened or overthrown.
Starmer modified his stance somewhat in his usual milquetoast fashion a couple of months later, but nowhere near Trump’s satisfaction, nor anything close to meeting the operational needs of the US military.
…But the spokesman said the prime minister had not changed his mind on the previous limits placed on American bombers taking off from British bases, including from R.A.F. Fairford, in a quiet corner of southern England, where B-52 and B-1 bombers have been loaded with munitions before setting off for Iran.
Those limits have enraged Mr. Trump, who has spent the last several weeks accusing Mr. Starmer of cowardice, belittling the capabilities of the British armed forces, and threatening to take the United States out of NATO in retaliation for what he calls a lack of support by allies in the war against Iran.
Mr. Starmer has insisted that Britain will not join “regime change from the skies,” saying that people in his country do not want a repeat of the government’s support of America during the war in Iraq in 2003.
But in an attempt to mollify Mr. Trump, the prime minister gave permission to American bombers to attack missile launchers in Iran that were being used to attack British facilities in the Middle East. Mr. Starmer later expanded that permission to include Iranian targets that were attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
That compromise does not appear to have worked with Mr. Trump, who on Monday compared Mr. Starmer to Neville Chamberlain, the former British prime minister who tried to appease Hitler ahead of World War II.
Fairford is a tiny base with long runways, and absolutely crucial for our long-range efforts.
And it is in a sleepy, lovely section of the country. Our Ebola*, who just transferred out two weeks ago, has loved the people in and around his little city outside Fairford for almost three years.
The area is still bucolic enough that when a resident notices something out of place and calls the police at 12:45 am, officers still respond.
And thank goodness.
…Julian Tudsbery, who has lived in Whelford for 30 years, said a resident had reported three “suspicious vans” in the village in the early hours of Sunday morning.
When the Gloucestershire police found the vans, it turned out to be far more alarming.
….Gloucestershire police said Sunday that the men were detained on suspicion of offenses under the Explosives Act, and that army bomb-disposal experts were examining several vehicles.
A major incident was declared and aerial footage from Sky News appeared to show a bomb disposal robot roaming between three white trucks. The rear doors of two of the vans were open and large black items could be seen scattered around.
As more footage from the early hours stop is coming in and the number of British counter terrorism and explosive experts involved grows, it’s quickly becoming apparent that something major has been planned.
For one thing, they’ve evacuated 85 area homes, which Ebola tells me is basically the entire population of little Whelford.
The ITV pullaway shot shows how close they were.
This video from the Sky Heli also shows it pic.twitter.com/CRf40cjykh
— eddie (@eddiefara) September 27, 2026
Five men have been arrested on terrorism related charges.
According to BBC, the five men arrested near RAF Fairford over suspicion of offenses under the UK’s Explosives Act in the have been additionally charged with “plotting to commit a terrorist act.” This comes following a press conference by police. No state or non-state actor… pic.twitter.com/R0Jea1forU
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) September 27, 2026
You can see them here in this grainy photo.
The Army’s specialist bomb disposal team was scrambled to the scene to examine the vehicles after the men were arrested under the Explosives Act.
…A 400-metre cordon is currently in place around the site with Gloucestershire Police saying it believes the incident is contained.
Police confirmed that several men had been taken into custody on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act following the discovery of viable incendiary devices and chemicals in a van.
A reporter interviews a local officer at a roadblock.
Bizarre footage from Britain: a reporter interviews an armed police officer manning a roadblock near RAF Fairford, and the officer appears unable to explain why he is there or what exactly is happening. With a major security incident and terror investigation underway, the footage… https://t.co/ldE5igFQxA pic.twitter.com/hWgdLLA1xV
— DDF NEWS (@ddfmarketing1) September 27, 2026
The Air Force has raised the threat level at RAF Fairford to Delta, the highest level they have, and to Charlie at RAF Mildenhall and Lakenheath.
UPDATE: #Fairford Incident
Police have further arrested the 5 suspects on suspicion of preparing to commit an act of terrorism, contrary to s.5 Terrorism Act 2000https://t.co/Tqw3cmuGwq pic.twitter.com/mMhis0VkiS
— DefenceGeek 🇬🇧 (@DefenceGeek) September 27, 2026
GB News is reporting ‘a major plot has been foiled.’
‘It seems a major plot has been foiled.’
GB News National Reporter Charlie Peters brings an update on the several men who have been arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act near RAF Fairford. pic.twitter.com/xSXbR7sC3D
— GB News (@GBNEWS) September 27, 2026
Fox had a quick update this morning.
But here’s where the twist comes in – President Trump, on the tarmac, said a joint British-US terrorism surveillance operation had had its eyes on these guys.
THE ARREST IN THE UK WAS FANTASTIC – WORKING WITH BRITAIN WAS AN AMAZING JOB
BREAKING: President Trump CONFIRMS a group of terrorist were ARRESTED in the UK after they tried blowing up RAF Fairford Base — home to both US and UK troops pic.twitter.com/97OxVLLegi
— Real America’s Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) September 27, 2026
It is true the joint bases in the UK had been on heightened security status over the past months, more so recently; there are conflicting reports on whether these particular evil doers were on anyone’s radar. Perhaps The Telegraph was unaware of President Trump’s comments, as those have only just occurred.
…Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, is receiving updates on the incident. A Government spokesman said: “It would be inappropriate to comment further whilst investigations are ongoing.”
It is understood that the investigation is being led by counter-terror police and the arrests were not part of a pre-planned operation.
The air base, which has been on heightened alert in recent days, hosts United States air force personnel and has been used to launch operations against Iran during the war in the Middle East.
In July, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) threatened to attack RAF Fairford and made veiled threats against the “British monarchy regime”.
The IRGC said “any base used for aggression against Iranian territory is a legitimate target for us”,
The Government has allowed US planes based at RAF Fairford to carry out defensive strikes on Iranian sites that have been targeting ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Speculation is also running wild as to both the identities of the five men in custody, their nationalities, and who is behind the plot. Is it Iranians, the Russians, or Palestinian elements?
Are the men immigrants, British citizens, or second-generation British?
The scope of the rapid response certainly lends itself to wondering if there had been some significant terrorist chatter that US and British authorities had simply not been able to pin to the wall yet, but had prepared for.
Educated assumption. The operation was so big so many people we had signal intelligence it was going to happen. Local tip occurred probably just hours before the planned attack. They is a much bigger underground network supporting these guys.
— Media Bogey (@rr1955) September 27, 2026
-Last night around midnight three vans were seen driving toward the RAF Fairford base with 5 suspects inside, importantly these vans have falsified logos on them.
-Local residents quickly called police who deployed armed units to arrest all 5 suspects under the explosives act.
-American and British military deployed heavy patrols around the base as it lockdown continued.
-The area was evacuated and put on lockdown with 80+ houses being evacuated.
-Early in the morning British miltiary bomb squads arrived with robots to open the vehicles which were visually packed with black barrels this process has been ongoing since the morning with two of the the three vehicles currently opened.
-Police have now further arrested the 5 suspects on suspicions of commit an act of terrorism.
That would work hand in glove with the president’s comments.
If that’s the case, I would expect more arrests shortly, too.
They’re not messing around at Fairford’s auxiliary gates now, either.
Tractors have been seen blocking the entrances to the RAF base in Fairford. pic.twitter.com/flCTjcPMwH
— Lydia (@LydiaB_reports) September 27, 2026
Ever vigilant.
GB News has more current local news.
And thank you from the bottom of my heart to that Whelford resident who, for whatever reason, was up late, saw something wrong, and got on the horn to the cops.
I am very grateful.
I’ll update as we find out more.
* Our son was one of the very first computer and gaming savants in the early 90s, winning tournaments and designing “skins” for games not long after Al Gore invented the innerwebs. Unfortunately, he also had a knack for catching the first viruses. One was so virulent that it wiped his computer and all of my work and required one of his father’s computer geeks to come from base with a DoD program to finally exterminate it. His uncle Bingley nicknamed him “Ebola,” and it has been his nom-de-innerwebs ever since.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are once again respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.
Help us continue to report on the administration’s peace through strength foreign policy and its successes. Join HotAir VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Read the full article here
