Black hawk helicopters, Chinook: US military aircraft, elite units land in UK as Trump mulls more missions after Venezuela strike

After US President Donald Trump has threatened strikes and annexations across the globe after capturing Venezuela, American forces have been training for extractions after amassing military aircraft in Britain. Heavily armed US military planes were seen landing in Britain since Saturday, suggesting that America is gearing up for future military operations following the capture of Venezuela’s President Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in a weekend raid. Reports suggest that US special forces were seen training in the UK after America amassed a fleet of heavily-armed US military planes across Europe. Videos on social media showed US special forces carrying out fast-rope exercises at an RAF airfield.

According to a report in Times of India's Naomi Canton, a fleet of at least 14 C-17 Globemaster III cargo jets and at least two armed AC-130J Ghostrider gunships landed at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, and RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, since Saturday. Special operations troops were observed rappelling from CV-22B tilt-rotor Osprey aircraft during a fast-rope and rescue training exercise at a British airbase on Tuesday. The action comes after the US forces seized a Russia-flagged oil tanker said to be a part of the international “Shadow Fleet” off the coast of Scotland after a two-week chase in the Atlantic. They also captured a second oil tanker in the Caribbean.

Is Washington preparing for more operations?

C-17 Globemaster transport planes are rumoured to have carried at least five MH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and one MH-47G Chinook, both commonly used in special forces missions. The Globemasters, which are heavy-lift military transport aircraft, are said to be carrying multiple MH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and MH-47G Chinooks. These are used in special forces operations and are equipped for high-risk infiltration and extraction missions.


The helicopters have been spotted in British hangars, according to flight tracking data and unconfirmed reports that appeared in various military blogs. According to unconfirmed reports, the helicopters have since been spotted inside hangars at UK airbases. The aircraft arrived at the bases, which are shared by the Royal Air Force and the US air force (USAF), shortly after American special forces captured President Maduro of Venezuela in a weekend raid.

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US warplanes, elite unites land in Britain

While the 174-foot-long Globemaster is built to transport a wide range of military vehicles and paratroopers, the Ghostrider is armed with cannons, bombs and missiles. At least five MH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and one MH-47G Chinook, believed to have been carried aboard the Globemaster, have reportedly been seen inside British hangars.

Meanwhile, a US Air Force KC-135R Stratotanker aerial refuelling aircraft landed at Mildenhall on Tuesday. Some of the aircraft involved are said to have departed from Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia and Fort Campbell in Kentucky, home to the US Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment—known as the Night Stalkers—which has played key roles in high-profile missions, including the operation to capture Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. Most of the Globemasters touched down at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, but several also landed in RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk.

An MoD spokesperson told TOI: “As routine, we do not comment on the operational activity of other nations, including third party use of UK bases. The US is the UK’s principal defence and security partner. The depth of our defence relationship with the US remains an essential part of our security.” A spokesman for the UK PM said: “I’m not going to comment on speculation around operational activity, especially regarding other nations. The US is the UK’s most important defence and security partner.”

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Tensions build up in Mid east

Tensions in the Middle East have been escalating as Iran’s leadership intensifies its violent crackdown on protests nationwide. Three days ago, Donald Trump warned that the United States would strike Iran “hard” if security forces continued to kill 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. In the aftermath of the Venezuela attack, Trump has also renewed his threats to annex Greenland, a territory he has long argued should fall under US control to strengthen security across the western hemisphere. He has refused to rule out the use of military force to occupy the island, prompting leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and Denmark to issue a joint statement on Tuesday calling on his administration to halt such threats.

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Separately, there is growing speculation that US forces could use Britain as a staging ground for a potential raid on a sanctioned oil tanker tracked from Venezuela and now heading north of UK waters. British aircraft, along with those of other NATO allies, are monitoring the vessel, which has abruptly re-registered under the Russian flag in what is widely seen as an attempt to avoid seizure by US authorities.

The United States operates in the UK under a framework of national and international agreements, chiefly the NATO Status of Forces Agreement and the Visiting Forces Act. Any US operation launched from a British base is assessed and approved on a case-by-case basis.

(With TOI inputs)