Four days after a major incident was declared near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, the picture is becoming clearer — though crucial questions remain unanswered. What began as a dramatic terror operation in the early hours of Sunday has moved into a quieter but more complex phase of investigation, with five men released on bail, police cordons expected to fully lift today, and counter-terrorism detectives pursuing multiple lines of enquiry.
How it unfolded
At 12.45am on Sunday 27 September, Gloucestershire Police received reports of suspicious vehicles near the US Air Force base at Fairford, on the county’s border with Wiltshire. Armed officers responded and found five men in three vans parked in Whelford, the village immediately east of the base. The men were arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and, later, on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act under the Terrorism Act.
Around 85 households were evacuated from Whelford as military bomb disposal teams moved in, deploying remote-controlled robots to examine the vehicles. A 400-metre exclusion cordon was put in place, and a huge presence of police and military continued throughout Monday and Tuesday.
What was — and wasn’t — found
After extensive forensic examination, counter-terrorism police confirmed on Tuesday that no improvised explosive devices were discovered in the three vans. A quantity of petrol — described officially as an accelerant — was recovered. That finding substantially changed the evidential picture: without explosives, the case for continued detention was weakened.
The five men are all UK nationals aged between 23 and 25. Four live in Westminster and one in Camden. Searches of their London home addresses are now complete. One significant detail has emerged: one of the men himself dialled 999 at 12.45am — almost an hour before a local farmer called police after discovering a group of hooded men blocking a road near the base.
Why the men were bailed
The decision to release the five men on police bail drew sharp international comment. US President Donald Trump said he was “disappointed” they had not been held. But the head of UK Counter Terrorism Policing, Laurence Taylor, defended the decision as “grounded in experience and strategy”.
A key legal distinction shapes the picture. The men were detained under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) rather than the Terrorism Act (TACT). Under PACE, investigators cannot access the 14-day maximum custody period available under terrorism legislation. With no explosive devices found in the vehicles, the threshold for extending custody would have been difficult to meet. Police bail with stringent conditions on movement and contact with others was the available investigative tool — and, according to Taylor, a deliberate strategic choice.
The international dimension
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that the incident “clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor” — though he provided no further details. President Trump suggested a possible connection to Iran. UK counter-terrorism chiefs have been more measured, saying they are “keeping an open mind” and exploring every possibility, including whether the men were proxies — wittingly or unwittingly — working on behalf of a foreign state.
Iran’s London embassy strongly rejected the speculation, calling it “unfounded and malicious”. Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who chaired a Cobra security meeting on Monday, asked the public not to speculate while the facts are established.
The Gloucestershire base has been used by US Air Force bombers to operate in the Middle East in recent months, following UK approval for American aircraft to fly missions involving Iran from the site. In July, Tehran warned that any base used for operations against Iranian territory would be “a legitimate target for our forces”.
What happens next
Police cordons around the base and the village of Whelford are expected to be fully lifted today, Wednesday 30 September, three days after the initial incident. Residents from the evacuated homes have already returned. The scene examination is being wound down by investigators.
The investigation itself, however, is far from over. Counter-terrorism detectives are examining phones and computers, tracking vehicle movements, and working alongside MI5 and GCHQ to identify whether anyone directed the five men — and what they intended to do. That work will determine whether further arrests follow, whether the men are charged, and whether the full story of that early Sunday morning in the Gloucestershire countryside is ever publicly resolved.
This is a developing story. We will update as details emerge.
Sources: BBC News, The Guardian, Gloucestershire Live, PA Media, Express & Star
