The United States military sent F-22 Raptor stealth fighters to an air base in Israel in late February 2026, marking the first time American combat aircraft have been deployed to the country for a potential wartime operation. The move came days after nuclear negotiations with Iran collapsed and as over 150 U.S. aircraft surged into Europe and the Middle East. With a second aircraft carrier approaching the region and the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem authorizing voluntary staff departures, the buildup signals a level of military preparation not seen in the region in years.
F-22 Raptors Touch Down in Israel
The deployment of F-22 Raptors to Israel represents a significant break from decades of American military practice. While the U.S. has long provided Israel with weapons, intelligence, and missile defense support, it had never stationed its own combat jets inside the country for a potential strike mission. That changed on February 26, 2026, when American Raptors arrived at an Israeli air base to counter potential missile and drone threats tied to Iran. The F-22 is the most capable air-superiority fighter in the American arsenal, designed to penetrate advanced air defenses while remaining difficult to detect on radar, and its presence in Israel underscores Washington’s willingness to place some of its most prized assets on the front line of a potential confrontation.
The decision to place these jets on Israeli soil, rather than at U.S. bases in the Gulf or on carrier decks, carries a distinct message. Basing combat aircraft inside Israel shortens response times and increases the number of sorties that can be flown against Iranian targets or incoming threats, while also simplifying logistics and command coordination with Israeli air defenses. It ties American military assets directly to Israel’s security in a way that forward-deployed carrier wings do not, effectively making any attack on Israeli airfields hosting U.S. jets an attack on U.S. forces. For Tehran, the presence of F-22s within minutes of its western approaches changes the calculus of any retaliatory strike, because misjudging U.S. resolve now risks rapid, precision American responses launched from Israeli territory itself.
A Broader Military Surge After Talks Collapse
The F-22 deployment did not happen in isolation. Negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program broke down around February 17, and within days the Pentagon began repositioning a massive wave of airpower across multiple combatant commands. According to an investigation detailing the scope of the response, more than 150 U.S. aircraft swept into Europe and the Middle East as the administration weighed potential strike options and sought to reassure allies. The mix of aircraft has not been fully disclosed, but it follows patterns seen in previous crises, when Washington blended stealth platforms, multirole fighters, electronic warfare assets, and aerial refueling tankers to create a flexible force capable of both deterrence and rapid offensive action.
Publicly available posture statements offer a window into the kind of toolkit the Pentagon is likely drawing on. In an earlier announcement about regional adjustments, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin highlighted deployments of F-35, F-15, F-16, and A-10 fighters alongside carrier movements as part of a broader effort to bolster deterrence during an Israel-related flare-up. The current surge appears to echo that template on a larger scale, pairing land-based aircraft with naval aviation to ensure overlapping coverage of potential flashpoints from the eastern Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf. Taken together with the arrival of F-22s in Israel, the buildup suggests planners are preparing for scenarios ranging from limited strikes on Iranian facilities to a wider regional confrontation involving proxy militias and missile salvos.
Dual Carriers and Maritime Signaling
Airpower is only one part of the emerging picture. By February 27, a second U.S. aircraft carrier was steaming toward the Middle East even as a nuclear deal with Iran remained out of reach, raising the prospect of rare dual-carrier operations in the region. Carrier strike groups bring not only dozens of additional fighter jets but also guided-missile cruisers and destroyers capable of launching long-range cruise missiles, defending against ballistic threats, and conducting maritime security operations. Operating two such groups in overlapping waters is resource-intensive and usually reserved for moments when Washington wants to send an unmistakable signal of resolve to adversaries and reassurance to allies.
The convergence of carrier air wings with land-based stealth fighters in Israel creates a layered force posture that complicates Iranian planning. From Tehran’s perspective, potential U.S. strike packages could now originate from multiple directions (Mediterranean waters, the Arabian Sea, Gulf bases, and Israeli airfields), making it harder to defend critical sites or calibrate retaliation. At the same time, the presence of powerful naval assets offers Washington options short of a full-scale air campaign, including limited cruise-missile strikes or show-of-force operations designed to influence Iranian decision-making without crossing into open war. This maritime dimension reinforces the broader message that the U.S. is prepared to escalate quickly if it judges that Iranian actions threaten American personnel, Israeli territory, or key shipping lanes.
Embassy Departures Signal Escalation Fears
Military deployments often speak louder than diplomatic statements, but the decision to thin out American civilian personnel in Israel added another layer of urgency to the unfolding crisis. On February 27, the State Department authorized voluntary departures for U.S. Embassy staff in Jerusalem, and Ambassador Mike Huckabee urged those eligible to move quickly in taking advantage of the offer. Authorized departure orders are a standard tool for managing risk to diplomats and their families, but their issuance just one day after the F-22s landed in Israel suggested that officials were actively gaming out scenarios in which Israel itself could come under sustained attack.
The departure authorization made no explicit mention of Iran, yet the broader context left little room for alternative explanations. Iran and its regional partners have demonstrated the ability to launch large-scale missile and drone salvos at Israel, and U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that any conflict over the nuclear file could spill beyond covert operations into more overt exchanges. Reducing the American civilian footprint lowers the risk of U.S. casualties if Israel is targeted and removes a potential constraint on military decision-making in Washington. With fewer diplomats and dependents in harm’s way, the political cost of a rapid retaliatory cycle diminishes, potentially giving the White House more flexibility to respond forcefully if Iranian or proxy attacks cross red lines.
Israel Expands Its Own Stealth Fleet
While the U.S. was positioning its most advanced jets on Israeli runways, Israel was simultaneously locking in its own next generation of stealth capability. The Defense Ministry announced that it had signed an agreement with Washington for a third squadron of F-35s, known locally as the Adir, which will be integrated into the Israel Defense Forces over the coming years. The deal, detailed in a ministry press release, underscores Israel’s long-term bet on stealth aircraft as the backbone of its deterrent posture against Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.
The parallel arrival of U.S. F-22s and expansion of Israel’s F-35 fleet highlight a deepening integration of the two countries’ air forces at a moment of acute tension. In the near term, American Raptors based in Israel provide an additional layer of protection against potential missile and drone barrages while signaling that Washington is prepared to defend its ally directly. Over the longer term, a larger Israeli Adir fleet will give Jerusalem more independent options for striking hardened or heavily defended targets if it concludes that diplomacy has failed to halt Iran’s nuclear advances. Together with the broader U.S. buildup of aircraft and naval power, these moves point to a region entering a more heavily militarized phase, in which deterrence rests increasingly on the visible presence of high-end combat platforms rather than the promise of future agreements.
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*This article was researched with the help of AI, with human editors creating the final content.
