Analysis by Declassified has found that Britain hosts the third-highest level of USAF personnel of any country in the world, ahead of historic U.S. military outposts like South Korea and Italy.

These American airmen have in recent years flown bombing missions to Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya from their bases in Britain. "The USAF presence in Britain isn't just some remnant of the Cold War, it's ongoing and very active," Kate Hudson, chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), told Declassified.

In recent months, huge American B-52 nuclear-capable bombers have been seen leaving and arriving at a RAF base in Gloucestershire. "The U.S. says they were on a training exercise to ensure they are 'ready,' presumably for war on Ukraine," Hudson added. "Once again we have a situation where war or other military actions can be prosecuted from Britain without parliamentary scrutiny."

The latest figures, correct for September 2021, show that 9,074 active-duty U.S. airmen are currently deployed in the U.K., together with 113 personnel from the USAF Reserves and a member of the USAF National Guard. Supporting them are 542 USAF civilian personnel.