US lands bomber at UK air base after warning of surge in strikes on Iran

A US bomber capable of carrying 24 cruise missiles has landed in the UK after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer approved "defensive" US action against Iranian missile sites from UK bases. Sir Keir had initially refused to grant permission for the US to use UK bases in its joint offensive with Israel against Iran, which caused a disagreement with President Donald Trump. The arrival of the huge aircraft comes after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday that strikes on Iran were "about to surge dramatically". The 146ft (44.5m) B-1 Lancer arrived at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on Friday evening. Trump told journalists in the Oval Office earlier this week he was "not happy with the UK" over the decision, which led to US planes "flying many extra hours" to carry out strikes last weekend. After granting the US permission to use RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, the prime minister told MPs the government "does not believe in regime change from the skies". RAF Fairford, located on the border of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire, has been used by the US in the past to conduct long-range heavy bombing missions. The B-1 bomber weighs 86 tonnes and