A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer prepares to land at RAF Fairford in England on July 15, 2025. The base, which hosts a B-1B Lancer detachment, drew a security response Sept. 12, 2026, when a civilian business jet mistakenly landed there after its pilot reportedly confused it with nearby Cotswold Airport. (Robert M. Trujillo/U.S. Air Force)
A civilian business jet triggered a security response after making an unauthorized landing this weekend at RAF Fairford in England, an active military installation known for hosting U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer strategic bombers.
According to publicly available flight data, the aircraft was a German-registered Cessna Citation Excel/XLS built in 2019 and operated by VistaJet. Private jets like the Citation are designed and marketed for corporate, charter and private use.
The jet took off from London City Airport at 8:49 a.m. on Saturday and landed at RAF Fairford at 9:21 a.m., according to flight-tracking data.
The Aviationist and other specialist publications reported that the crew had intended to land at nearby Cotswold Airport, though they did not identify the source of that information.
About three hours after landing at RAF Fairford, the jet made a four-minute flight to Cotswold Airport, according to flight-tracking data.
Security personnel responded to the jet’s unannounced arrival, according to images posted online by amateur plane spotters.
The landing was a mistake and was neither planned nor a deliberate threat to the base’s security, the Aviationist said. RAF Fairford did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Unauthorized landings at RAF bases are rare though not unprecedented. In 2020, a civilian Pilatus PC-12 made an unauthorized landing at an RAF base in Wales. A similar mistake was made by another civilian aircraft in 2016.
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