RAF FAIRFORD
Shortly after midnight on September 27, 2026, police responded to reports of suspicious vehicles near RAF Fairford, a British airbase used extensively by the United States.
Five men were arrested. The investigation moved quickly into explosives and terrorism territory.
Then people started talking.
Gloucestershire Police receive a report of three suspicious vehicles traveling toward RAF Fairford.
Armed officers respond. Five men are subsequently arrested in Whelford.
They are initially detained on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and are later arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.
A local farmer describes encountering three white vans near RAF Fairford and seeing masked or hooded men in the area.
She attempts to contact authorities and ultimately calls emergency services.
In subsequent interviews, she says she believed she had seen more people than the five men eventually arrested.
Counter Terrorism Policing takes over the investigation.
A cordon is established, residents are evacuated and specialists begin examining the area and vehicles.
Investigators say they are working to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.
President Donald Trump says American and British authorities already knew about the suspects.
Trump says the suspects intended to cause “big damage” and says authorities had been watching them:
Britain's defence secretary is questioned about the witness's account and what security services knew before the arrests.
Streeting says the witness has only a “partial picture.”
He declines to disclose operational information about what authorities knew beforehand.
Police identify the five suspects as UK nationals, ages 23 to 25, living in London.
Investigators say they are still working to establish the men's activity, knowledge and motivation.
Police acknowledge speculation about possible geopolitical motives and urge against drawing conclusions while the investigation continues.
Iran's embassy in London denies Iranian involvement in the incident.
The embassy rejects speculation connecting Iran to the alleged plot.
invisible ink?
MI5 caught German spy Karl Muller using lemon juice as invisible ink.
After Muller was executed, MI5 pretended he was still alive.
German intelligence kept paying him.
with the money.
They named it “The Muller.”
The farmer gives additional interviews about what happened.
She says she believes she encountered the vehicles by chance and says authorities had not subsequently contacted her for additional information.
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor provides another official update.
Police say the three vehicles have undergone an “extensive examination” involving military assets and forensic specialists.
Then comes the announcement:
The men remain under investigation and are subject to restrictions on movement and contact.
Taylor says investigators are keeping an “open mind” and considering “every possible angle,” including whether people could have been knowingly or unknowingly acting on behalf of a foreign state.
Taylor also addresses speculation about what authorities knew before the arrests.
He says such information cannot always be disclosed publicly and notes the relationship between counterterrorism policing and MI5.
Trump is asked about Britain's decision to release the suspects on bail.
Asked whether Iran could be connected to the incident, Trump says it “might be.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly describes foreign involvement more definitively than British investigators have.
Rubio does not publicly identify that foreign actor or disclose the evidence underlying the conclusion.
Read It Straight Through
The record isn't finished.
Last Updated: September 28, 2026
Revision: 12