A massive influx of American military aircraft has been spotted at British RAF bases, fueling speculation that President Donald Trump is preparing for further military operations after the stunning capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. At least 14 C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft and two heavily armed AC-130J Ghostrider gunships have landed at three RAF bases in Suffolk and Gloucestershire since Saturday.
The Globemasters are rumored to have been carrying at least five MH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and one MH-47G Chinook, which are used for special forces operations. The helicopters have reportedly been spotted in British hangars, according to unconfirmed reports, raising questions about the purpose of this significant American military presence on British soil.
Aircraft arrive shortly after Maduro’s capture in Venezuela
The aircraft arrived at the bases, which are shared by the Royal Air Force and the US Air Force, shortly after American special forces captured President Maduro of Venezuela in a weekend raid. While American activity in the UK appears to be in preparation for further operations, no details have been provided through official channels.
Most of the Globemasters touched down at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, but several also landed at RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. Fairford is considered the main air bridge from the US into Europe, and flight data has shown several of the Globemasters moving on to Ramstein in Germany. An American KC-135R Stratotanker military aerial refueling plane also landed in Mildenhall on Tuesday after flying in from the US.
Trump warns Iran as tensions mount in Middle East
Tensions have been building in the Middle East as the Iranian regime violently suppresses protests across the country. Three days ago, Trump warned that the US would hit Iran “hard” if the regime’s forces killed demonstrators. “America will come to their rescue … We are locked and loaded and ready to go”, he wrote on social media, making the prospect of American and Israeli strikes increasingly likely. The death toll among demonstrators has since climbed to 35 people, according to Iranian activists.
Since the Venezuela attack, Trump has made more threats to annex Greenland, which he has long argued should come under American control to bolster the security of the western hemisphere. He has refused to rule out using military force to occupy the island, prompting the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Denmark to issue a joint statement on Tuesday urging his administration to stop making threats.
There is also speculation that US forces may use Britain as a platform from which to raid a sanctioned oil tanker that is being tracked from Venezuela and heading north of UK waters. British aircraft and those of other NATO allies are monitoring the vessel, which has hastily changed its flag to Russia‘s in an apparent attempt to prevent seizure by the US.
Globemasters and Ghostriders: A formidable combination
The Globemaster, one of the world’s largest transport aircraft, and the smaller but more powerful Ghostrider, could potentially be used together in a covert US operation overseas. Troops can parachute from Globemasters into combat. The 174ft transporters are powered by turbofan engines and can carry an array of vehicles with a payload capacity exceeding 150,000lb. Ghostriders are armed with a 30mm Bushmaster cannon, 105mm howitzer, and Hellfire missiles, and can lay down a devastating weight of fire on targets.
Some of these aircraft took off from bases in Georgia and Kentucky, which are home to the US Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, among other units. The elite unit, better known as the Night Stalkers, operates a range of special forces helicopters and specializes in flying units into combat at night. The unit played a pivotal role in the mission to seize Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and extract them to the US.
It is also possible that the aircraft could be used to increase special forces operations against Islamic State in Syria after a wave of strikes by European forces, including Britain, over the last few days. The Ministry of Defence said it would not comment on the “on the operational activity of other nations”.