RAF Lakenheath

RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, England is the largest US Air Force base in the United Kingdom and home to the 48th Fighter Wing, which includes the 494th Fighter Squadron flying F-15E Strike Eagles. In April 2026, Lakenheath-based F-15Es are flying sorties over Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury. The 494th's aircraft sustained the first fixed-wing US loss of the campaign on 3 April, when an F-15E was shot down over western Iran. A-10 Warthogs from Lakenheath also participated in search and rescue operations that same day; one A-10 crashed into the Persian Gulf during the SAR mission.

Lakenheath has hosted US forces since 1948 and is the only USAF base in the UK with a nuclear capability, hosting B61 nuclear bombs under NATO nuclear sharing arrangements. The base employs approximately 4,600 US personnel and has been the launch point for combat missions over Iraq, the Balkans, Libya and Afghanistan. Its proximity to London and its integration into UK defence infrastructure makes it politically significant in any US-UK joint operation.

The use of Lakenheath as a staging base for Iran operations implicates the UK in the campaign whether or not London publicly endorses strikes. Each sortie from UK soil deepens British political exposure and complicates the government's effort to maintain a distinct diplomatic position from Washington's on the Iran conflict.