US military use of Scotland's Prestwick Airport has surged as Donald Trump launched fresh strikes across Iran and declared the ceasefire is “over”.
Analysis of flight tracking data shows US military aircraft departed Glasgow Prestwick Airport 18 times since last Wednesday – a stark increase compared with normal levels.
It comes as renewed hostilities broke out between the US and Iran earlier this week after the latter targeted three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, which remains a flashpoint in the fragile truce.
US forces said they hit about 90 targets across Iran on Wednesday with Trump warning the conflict could “get much worse”.
Now, The National can reveal that, in the week prior to these strikes and up to today, multiple heavy‑duty cargo and transport planes – including the C‑17 Globemaster and Lockheed C-130T Hercules – have departed the Scottish Government-owned airport and flown to key hubs that have been used to support the US‑led war on Iran, such as Naval Air Station Sigonella in Sicily.
This increase in US military activity ahead of and during an increase in strikes on Iran mirrors the build‑up ahead of February’s Operation Epic Fury, when the United States and Israel first launched major strikes on Iran, killing its then supreme leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei.
An investigation by the Sunday National found that the US military used Prestwick at least 32 times in the 10 days before those strikes – including en route to key US and Nato military hubs in the Mediterranean and Middle East.
At the time, a military intelligence expert said the Sunday National’s findings were “concrete proof” the airport has been used to help the US bomb Iran, albeit specifically as part of the broader supply chain underpinning operations.
The Scottish Greens have called on likely incoming prime minister Andy Burnham to take action and ban these flights. The party’s MSP Maggie Chapman also urged the Scottish Government to “stop hiding behind Westminster”.
Earlier this year, First Minister John Swinney requested a meeting with UK ministers over the issue.
He later said the Scottish Government is not legally able to block US planes from using Prestwick Airport in its war against Iran because the necessary powers are reserved to Westminster.
The SNP leader said he had looked "very closely" at the issue, as people in Scotland have "enormous concern and unease" around the conflict – referencing the war's consequences for energy prices, the cost of living, mortgages, as well as the environmental impact.
But he continued: "If I was to prevent flights from entering Scotland by the appropriate steps that would be necessary, I would need to exercise national security, aviation, air transport, defence and foreign affairs powers.”
The Ministry of Defence (MoD), meanwhile, has repeatedly said the airport was not being used to launch military strikes.
Chapman, meanwhile, told The National: “Each one of these flights through Scottish Government-owned Prestwick is a moral disgrace. The fact that it is so clearly aligned with military build-up and armed conflict should alarm everyone who wants Scotland to be a voice for peace.
“Governments cannot wash their hands of how public infrastructure is being used while Trump’s troops are inflicting such a reckless and devastating war on Iran.”
She added: “With Andy Burnham set to take office he must finally end these flights and put a halt to a foreign policy position that has put cosying up to the US ahead of the rights and lives of Iranians.
“Donald Trump is a dangerous, warmongering fascist president who has shown contempt for international law and human rights while inflicting terror upon people across the Middle East. His war on Iran has already had devastating consequences, and now he risks pulling the whole region into even deeper catastrophe to satisfy his massive ego.
“The Scottish Government must stop hiding behind Westminster and start using every power and lever it has. Scotland should not be a staging post for Trump’s military machine and his reckless war. Scottish Government ministers must act to end US military use of this publicly-owned airport immediately.”
