The British Royal Air Drive has forward-deployed six F-35B fifth era fighters to RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus, contributing to a significant U.S.-led navy buildup towards Iran. The Air Drive describes the Akrotiri base as a Everlasting Joint Working Base that capabilities as a ahead mounting base for Center East contingencies, signalling a posture constructed for fast escalation administration. The UK is the one F-35 operator to discipline solely the F-35B variant, which whereas being by far the costliest, can also be considerably extra restricted in its fight capabilities with an roughly 35 % shorter vary, and a a lot smaller weapons bay and extra constrained flight efficiency. The plane nonetheless present a considerably superior fight functionality to the British Eurofighters beforehand deployed to Qatar in late January as a part of the identical navy buildup.
The F-35’s distinctive array of passive sensors make it an optimum fighter to interact Iran’s sizeable community of ground-based air defence techniques, permitting the plane to gather vital digital intelligence and distribute this to different belongings throughout the theatre. Nonetheless, as was the case for Israeli Air Drive F-35I fighters throughout engagements in June 2025, the F-35’s lack of Block 4 degree software program, or of compatibility with any air-to-ground missiles till this commonplace is reached, limits their capacity to participate in kinetic assaults. An essential benefit of the F-35B over different fighter varieties within the theatre is its brief takeoff and vertical touchdown capabilities, which permit them to function from makeshift ahead airbases. This could possibly be significantly helpful in a battle with Iran because of the expectation of main missile assaults on all main Western Bloc airbases within the theatre.
The UK has deployed fighters to participate in a number of latest operations within the Center East, with Eurofighters having been deployed to RAF Akrotiri in late 2023 to supply assist to the continued Israeli battle effort towards Palestinian militia teams within the Gaza Strip by conducting surveillance flights. The Royal Air Drive had from December to mid-January 2024 flown over 50 surveillance flights over the territory from the ability, complementing provides of armaments to assist an ongoing Israeli invasion of Gaza. RAF Akrotiri was beforehand used as a staging floor for offensives towards Libya in 2011, and from January 12, 2024 was been used for strikes towards Yemeni Ansuruallah Coalition forces. Fighters primarily based on the facility had been the earlier decade used to supply air assist to anti-government rebel teams in Syria.
Though twelve British Royal Air Drive Eurofighters had been deployed to Qatar in January, their obsolescence for top depth fight, and reliance on the Captor mechanically scanned array radar which is extremely susceptible to jamming, has meant that they won’t be concerned in potential assaults on Iran. The Eurofighters have as an alternative been assigned air defence duties, within the expectation of enormous scale Iranian drone assaults on Western Bloc navy services throughout the area. The USA’ personal navy buildup has included the deployment of eight destroyers, the supercarrier USS Abraham Lincoln, dozens of provide runs by C-17 and C-5 strategic transports, and deployments of EA-18G air defence suppression plane and F-15E lengthy vary strike fighters to Jordan. The Abraham Lincoln’s air wing features a squadron of Marine Corps F-35C fighters, which have considerably better fight potentials than British F-35Bs, and which noticed fight on February 3 capturing down an Iranian Shahed 136 unmanned reconnaissance plane.
Though the British Ministry of Defence has confronted appreciable strain from native trade to keep away from purchases of the F-35A, a a lot more cost effective ground-based counterpart to the F-35B which has significantly much less native industrial participation than the Eurofighter or the F-35B, a call to amass the plane was confirmed in 2025. The Ministry that 12 months completely shelved plans to buy additional Eurofighters, and is ready to proceed to withdraw them from service whereas ordering F-35A fighters. The brand new plane is predicted to supply a considerably superior fight functionality to each the F-35B and the Eurofighter, whereas having far decrease procurement and sustainment prices than the F-35B. The F-35B was initially prioritised to equip the air wings of the nation’s two Queen Elizabeth class carriers, though finances shortages, the plane’s immense prices and extra restricted fight capabilities, and prevailing points with the 2 carriers, have led to deep cuts to deliberate acquisitions.
