Iranupdated 1h ago3 min read
MapUS RC-135U Combat Sent Lands At RAF Mildenhall Amid Trump-Iran Tensions
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RC-135U reconnaissance aircraft (64-14849) tracked crossing the Atlantic toward the United Kingdom. The operation occurs amid US-Iran tensions and regional security concerns tied to midterm politics.
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Spy plane to RAF Mildenhall
A US Air Force RC-135U Combat Sent reconnaissance aircraft, serial number 64-14849, was tracked crossing the Atlantic toward the UK and landed at RAF Mildenhall, drawing attention amid uncertainty over further US military action against Iran. Flight trackers identified the aircraft by callsign COBRA49 on 4 November, and open-source tracking from ADSBexchange showed it leaving Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska at 23:45 on 3 November, stopping at Pease Air National Guard Base in New Hampshire, then landing at RAF Mildenhall at 13:33.
The Aerospace Global News report said the Combat Sent is a highly specialised electronic intelligence aircraft, and it described the mission as locating, identifying, and examining radar emissions from foreign military systems. The report also said President Donald Trump told the Financial Times the US had no immediate plans to strike Iran while maintaining that American forces were “locked and loaded” if required, and it added that the aircraft’s presence alone does not establish that another attack on Iran is approaching.
Iran demands, mediation continues
Iran’s chief negotiator and speaker of the Parliament, Mohamad Baqer Qalibaf, said the Democratic Party’s midterm gains prove Americans said “no to war,” whether “out of conscience or the cost of living,” and he said “We support this message.”
Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said in a post on X that “They must completely and explicitly address Iran's seven conditions and act upon them. Only in this case the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened,” while Iran conveyed a plan through mediators on September 22 to end hostilities and reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if its conditions were met.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said the United States and Iran were reviewing proposals to end their conflict, and he said a Qatari delegation returned from Tehran on Monday evening after more than three hours of talks with Iranian officials.
Qatar’s mediation position also appeared in IranWire’s account, where Majed al-Ansari said Qatar does not assess negotiations based on media statements or escalating public postures, and he emphasized that Qatar evaluates “official responses to submitted proposals and closed-door proceedings.”
Escalation risks and US options
The US and Iran continued exchanging warnings as the US midterm elections approached their conclusion, and the CGTN report said Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Ali Abdollahi warned Iran would respond to any level or type of threat from the United States and Israel immediately and “without geographical limitations.” President Donald Trump told Axios he was “in no rush” to decide whether to resume military action against Iran, and he said “We crippled them financially,” while the same reporting described divisions among senior officials over whether to pursue diplomacy, renewed military operations, or maximum economic pressure.
The CGTN report said the United States attacked Iran's strategic Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, and it said Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps reported intercepting three US drones in southern airspace, identifying two as MQM-170 Outlaw drones and saying an MQ-9 Reaper was shot down in waters east of the Strait of Hormuz. The Reuters-linked Aerospace Global News account framed the broader question as whether Washington would escalate to a more sustained campaign, and it said President Donald Trump played down immediate escalation in the Financial Times interview while maintaining that American forces were “locked and loaded” if required.