RAF Akrotiri, Britain’s base in Cyprus that was hit by a drone strike during the Iran war in March, is to become the launch point for a UK aircraft supporting Saudi Arabia’s defences against Yemen’s Houthis.
A single Voyager aircraft based at the Cyprus base is expected to begin providing “defensive air-to-air refuelling” support for Saudi Arabia within days, Andy Burnham said, in comments reported by the BBC.
The British prime minister said the offer follows a Saudi request for “military support”, agreed on the advice of Defence Secretary Wes Streeting and Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband.
Officials in the British government described the arrangement as “time limited”, saying it was likely, for now, to run “for weeks,” the BBC reported.
Akrotiri, one of two British Sovereign Base Areas on the island, was struck by a drone for the first time on 2 March 2026. Cyprus’s president, Nikos Christodoulides, said an Iranian-made Shahed-type drone had crashed into the base, causing what he described as minor material damage. No injuries were reported. Cyprus’s foreign minister, Constantinos Kombos, said the drone appeared to have been launched from Lebanon.
Further drones aimed at Cyprus were intercepted in the days that followed, and Britain deployed a warship and two Royal Navy helicopters to the island in response. Akrotiri is Britain’s main airbase for operations in the Middle East and has previously been used to launch strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
Yemen’s Houthi movement is fighting a civil war against the country’s internationally recognised, Saudi-backed government. The Houthis have said they recently launched drone and ballistic missile attacks on the Saudi capital Riyadh, along with energy facilities on the country’s Red Sea coast.
British told BBC that the defensive assistance from Akrotiri could extend to helping Saudi fighter jets intercept incoming Houthi missiles and drones.
The RAF’s Voyager fleet numbers nine aircraft in total, eight registered for military use and one for civilian use, with a further five available to be recalled for military service if required.
Burnham made the comments to reporters travelling with him to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he tied the decision to the cost of living.
“I go back to the point I made about cost-of-living pressures and acting to secure the interests of Britain and the wider region,” he said. “Because of course Saudi Arabia has been experiencing attacks, is looking at potential further disruption, and we need to keep those pathways open, and hence our agreement to the request.”
The BBC noted that Red Sea shipping lanes form a vital part of global trade, and that the Houthis have recently taken control of the port city of Mokha and Perim Island, a strategic gateway guarding a route that Saudi Arabia relies on.
In a BBC interview last week, Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte said support from European allies for Saudi Arabia was also likely to follow. “I would not be surprised if some phone calls were taking place between European allies, ‘hey, how are we going to deal with this?’,” he said. “Let’s see what happens, and if Nato can help, we will always be helpful.”
Energy Minister Martin McCluskey told MPs last week that Britain was “providing air defence support” to Saudi Arabia under their existing defence partnership, though he declined to give details of any operational activity.
The UK last took direct military action against the Houthis in January 2024, joining the US in air strikes on Houthi targets across Yemen. Then-prime minister Rishi Sunak said Britain had “acted in self-defence” after Houthi forces targeted shipping, including a Royal Navy warship, describing the strikes as “necessary, proportionate, and targeted” to safeguard lives and commercial vessels.
Joint UK-US air strikes against Houthi positions continued through 2024.
