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THINK TANK: CONSULTANT
What exactly is RAF Fairford?
Bea SwallowBBC Live page reporter
RAF Fairford is a military airfield located in the Gloucestershire Cotswolds, about four miles (6.4km) south of the town of Fairford.
It is owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD), but is operated on a day-to-day basis by the United States Air Force (USAF) under an agreement between the UK and US.
The site shares a long history with the American military, and has recently been used by US warplanes as a staging post for strikes on Iran due to its long runway, from which it can quickly deploy large bombers.
Historically, aircraft launched from the site have been involved in the Gulf War, the Kosovo War, and the Iraq War.
The rural area is typically quiet but about 170,000 people descend on the site every July for the Royal International Air Tattoo, the largest military show in the world.
