- Three U.S. Air Force U-28A special operations aircraft moved north over the United Kingdom on Jan. 7, heading toward the North Sea as part of a coordinated mission amid the ongoing Marinera tanker standoff.
- The deployment follows recent CV-22B fast-rope training in the U.K. and increased U.S. surveillance flights as the Russian-flagged, sanctioned tanker approaches European waters.
The United States Air Force moved multiple special operations support aircraft north along the coast of the United Kingdom today, as three U-28A Draco intelligence and reconnaissance aircraft were tracked heading toward the North Sea amid rising tensions over the Russian-flagged crude oil tanker Marinera.
Aircraft spotters observed U-28A aircraft using the callsigns AGREE32, AGREE34, and AGREE36 departing from RAF Mildenhall and RAF Coningsby on Wednesday morning before turning northbound off the coast of Scotland. Flight paths recorded by commercial tracking services showed all three aircraft climbing to operational altitude and proceeding toward the same sector of the North Sea.
According to publicly available data, the U-28A Draco — a Pilatus PC-12 modified for special operations forces (SOF) — provides real-time airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support to U.S. Special Operations Command. The aircraft are normally assigned to U.S. Air Force Special Operations units, including those linked to maritime interdiction missions and hostage recovery operations.
Earlier, video footage posted on social media showed CV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft from the 7th Special Operations Squadron, stationed at RAF Mildenhall, conducting fast-rope and rescue training at RAF Fairford. Observers noted that the training resembled preparation for a potential boarding or seizure operation at sea.
The activity comes as the crude oil tanker Marinera — formerly Bella 1 — continues to evade U.S. authorities after leaving Venezuelan waters. The vessel, now operating under a Russian flag and linked to Iranian-sanctioned shipments, has been tracked moving from the Caribbean to the North Atlantic over the past 17 days. It was last spotted northwest of Ireland.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia has deployed a submarine and additional naval assets into the North Atlantic to meet the tanker and “protect it from a possible seizure by American forces.”
The U-28A aircraft observed today are capable of supporting maritime domain awareness, navigation assistance for SOF teams, and real-time targeting updates for units preparing to conduct boarding actions. While U.S. officials have not commented publicly on any potential operation, the movement of three identical platforms to the same region within minutes of each other suggests a coordinated mission tasking.
The deployment also follows heightened U.S. surveillance in the region. In recent days, RC-135 signals intelligence aircraft operating from RAF Mildenhall have flown repeated reconnaissance missions west of the United Kingdom and along the northern transit routes approaching the North Atlantic.