U.S. Is Deploying Dozens Of Warplanes, Including F-22s, E-3s And U-2s, Near Iran (Videos)

Illustrative image. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Russ Scalf)

The United States military has moved over 50 warplanes to the Middle East in the last 24 hours as part of its buildup of air and naval assets close to Iran, Axios reported on February 17, citing open source flight tracking data and a U.S. official.

The mass deployment came despite reports of some progress in the second round of indirect nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran, which was held on the same day in Geneva.

Online flight tracking data shows that at least a dozen F-22 Raptors have left Langley Air Force Base in Virginia heading east. At least six landed at Lakenheath Air Base in the United Kingdom. The F-22 is a stealth air superiority fighter jet, considered to be the U.S. most capable air-to-air warplane, with precision strike capabilities.

In addition, at least 48 F-16 Fighting Falcons appear to be on the move toward the Middle East. The multirole fighter jets took off from Aviano Air Base in Italy, Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany and McEntire Joint National Guard Base in South Carolina.

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Two E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning And Control Systems (AWACS) aircraft also landed at Mildenhall Air Base in the UK. These radar-equipped aircraft were designed to provide all-weather surveillance, command, control, and communications.

At least one U-2 Dragon Lady spy plane was also spotted on the way to the Middle East. The U-2 can provide high-altitude surveillance in addition to providing communications relay.

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It’s worth noting that a day earlier at least 18 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters left Lakenheath Air Base in the UK headed for Muwaffaq Salti, in central Jordan. The air base became one of the focal points for the U.S. military buildup in the region in recent weeks.

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And day after Axios report, additional U.S. warplanes were spotted heading to Europe and the Middle East, including four more E-3s, and at least one E-11A Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN), which provides communications relay.

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The U.S. already has dozens — at least over 50 — of warplanes deployed in the Middle East, including F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets, EA-18G Growler electronic attack jets, A-10 Thunderbolt II close air support jets, and even MQ-9 Reaper combat drones.

That’s not to mention at least over 70 warplanes, mainly F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier currently deployed in the Middle East along with its strike group

A second carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, with its own flight wing and strike group are expected to arrive in the region within two weeks.

After holding indirect talks with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of United States President Donald Trump, in Geneva on February 17, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that the two sides reached an understanding on the main “guiding principles” of a new nuclear agreement.

Despite this positive statement, the scale and cost of the U.S. military buildup in the Middle East appears to have reached a level where an attack on Iran is inevitable.

Iran seems well aware of this threat this time, unlike last June when it let its guards down to negotiate only to be attacked by Israel with the U.S. joining in later. Large-scale drills in the strategic Hormuz Strait made it clear that the Islamic Republic is keeping its finger on the trigger.

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