On October 1, Iran fired 200 ballistic missiles on Israel. Israel then relied on its own anti-aircraft systems with anti-ballistic missile capabilities as well as missiles fired from the American guided missile destroyers USS Bulkely (DDG-84, Arleigh Burke class) and USS Cole (DDG-67, Arleigh Burke class). ). Details of other foreign aid were not known then, until today; On October 2 at 3:51 p.m., the British Ministry of Defense posted an announcement on its X account (below) confirming that combat aircraft had been deployed in support of Israel. In total, the Royal Air Force deployed two Typhoon fighter planes (British name of the Eurofighter) during the attack, supported by a Voyager tanker (British name of the A330 MRTT). The announcement does not give information on their departure base but it is more than likely the English air base of Akrotiri (Cyprus, United Kingdom).
Unlike the Iranian attack of April 2024, no cruise missile or suicide drone appears to have been launched and in fact, the English planes were unable to engage the Iranian ballistic missiles. The publication specifies that their presence helped to dissuade Iran from continuing its escalation, suggesting that their presence had been clearly announced to Iran; to be effective, any deterrent must be visible!
