A B-52H Stratofortress of the United States Air Force issued a distress call while flying over the United Kingdom on Tuesday morning, according to flight data. Data from Flightradar24 showed the aircraft sent a 7700 emergency code near Bristol. It later landed safely at RAF Fairford around 9.40 am. The cause remains unclear. The bomber had taken off at 9.20 am and returned within 18 minutes. There has been no comment from the Pentagon or the UK government.
The powerful aircraft’s sudden distress signal raises questions whether it hadย detected a threat or possibly an oncoming missile amid the ongoing conflict between the US, Israel and Iran.
On March 12, a KC-135 Stratotanker crashed in western Iraq, killing all 6 crewmembers. The US Central Command said it followed an incident in “friendly airspace”.
Iran’s claims of downing US fighter jets
Iran has repeatedly claimed that it shot down US fighter jets during the ongoing conflict, but these assertions remain disputed and largely unverified.
According to Iranian state-linked reports, the claims of downing US aircraft, including F-15 jets, surfaced around March 20 to March 23. However, the US has denied these claims, and there has been no independent confirmation.
In a separate incident reported around March 22, a US F-35 fighter jet was damaged during operations and made an emergency landing, but it was not shot down, and the pilot was safe.
There were also reports around March 21 of a possible friendly fire incident during joint operations, which added to the confusion and may have been misattributed to Iranian action.
US military presence in UK
RAF Fairford hosts US bombers including B 1 Lancers, deployed with approval from Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The B 52H is a long range bomber capable of carrying nuclear or conventional weapons, flying up to 50,000 feet with a range of about 8,800 miles.
The B-52H is a long range bomber capable of carrying nuclear and conventional weapons, flying up to 50,000 feet altitude with a range of about 8,800 miles.
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