F-22s Become Latest USAF Combat Aircraft to Leave Middle East Despite Iran Tensions

F-22 Raptors that had been stationed in the Middle East arrived in England on July 10, the latest batch of U.S. warplanes to leave the region despite ongoing tensions with Iran.

Around 10 F-22s assigned to the 1st Fighter Wing from Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., arrived at RAF Fairford, U.K, on July 10, according to flight trackers. The jets were seen and documented by local aircraft spotters.

Earlier this month, around a dozen F-15E Strike Eagles from the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath, U.K., returned home following their deployment, around the same time six B-52 Stratofortress bombers left RAF Fairford, where they had been staged to launch missions against Iran. Two dozen B-1B Lancers remain at Fairford.

In June, roughly a dozen A-10 Thunderbolt II attack planes from the 23rd Wing at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., also passed through Lakenheath, according to local spotters and aviation trackers. The F-15Es and A-10s carried kill markings that indicated the aircraft had been involved in numerous missions during the conflict. The B-52s also participated in bombing missions.

F-22s, F-16s, F-15Es, F-35s, and A-10s have all been involved in combat operations against Iran. A sizable presence of USAF fighters remains in the region, along with Navy fighters from the USS George H.W. Bush. A typical deployment for a fighter squadron lasts six months, and it is unclear whether some of the fighters that have now departed the region will be replaced.

The departure of the planes comes as President Donald Trump’s administration is entering a new phase of its policy toward Iran.

On Feb. 28, the U.S. joined Israel in intensive airstrikes on Iran’s missile force and other military targets as part of Operation Epic Fury. In early April, it shifted to a naval blockade on Iranian oil shipments to choke off the Iranian government’s main source of revenue. The U.S and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding in mid-June to reopen the Strait of Hormuz toll-free for 60 days and set the stage for talks on Iran’s nuclear program.

But minor hostilities continue as the two sides differ over how to interpret the memorandum, with Iran claiming it grants them the right to manage shipping through the corridor. After Iran attacked several tankers moving in waters near Oman this week, the U.S. struck more than 170 targets.

Trump said on social media July 10 that the tenuous ceasefire between the two countries is now “over.” But his aides say the U.S. is still open to a resolution to hostilities.

“The United States is still committed to finding a resolution, and technical talks continue,” a U.S. official said in a statement on July 9. 

For now, the White House appears to have little interest in resuming large-scale operations—allowing the B-52s and fighters to return to the U.S.