F35s, tankers and the world’s largest warship: Trump’s forces build up ahead of potential Iran strike

Reports suggest Donald Trump could launch attacks on Iran within days after weeks of growing tensions with Tehran NewsWorldMiddle EastF35s, tankers and the world’s largest warship: Trump’s forces build up ahead of potential Iran strikeReports suggest Donald Trump could launch attacks on Iran within days after weeks of growing tensions with TehranMaira Butt & James C. ReynoldsThursday 19 February 2026 14:26 GMTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popoverIran holds military drill in key oil strait on eve of US nuclear talksYour support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. 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We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreThe United States is building up military assets near the Middle East, so it is ready to strike Iran as soon as Saturday, according to reports.Tensions between the US and Tehran have been mounting for weeks, after Donald Trump highlighted the regime’s brutal crackdown on protesters and called for Iran to make a deal on its nuclear capabilities. As rhetoric between the two sides has ramped up, US deployment in and around the region has grown. The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier was spotted off the coast of Oman this week and will soon be joined by the world’s largest warship, the $13bn USS Gerald R Ford.The ongoing buildup has seen destroyers and specialist combat ships move to cover Iran’s southern flank as F-15 and EA-18 fighter jets gather numbers across military bases to the west.open image in galleryThe USS Gerald R Ford, the world’s largest warship, has been sent to the region (AP)President Trump warned on Wednesday that if Iran fails to agree a deal, it may be “necessary” to attack the country from Diego Garcia or RAF Fairford, threatening to drag Britain into the conflict.Iran remains ready to retaliate, according to ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said this week that the United States “may be struck so hard that it cannot get back up” if it renews attacks against the regime.Naval buildup in the regionThe USS Abraham Lincoln is currently situated in the Arabian Sea, while the USS Gerald R Ford is passing through the Gibraltar Strait and could be positioned south of Cyprus in a matter of days. The carriers are supported by protective destroyers in a ‘carrier strike group’. In total, eleven destroyers in the region will join three Littoral combat ships. Two or three attack submarines – including at least one with nuclear capabilities – loaded with Tomahawk missiles are also present. The ayatollah issued a stark warning as the USS Gerald R Ford approached the Mediterranean this week, saying: “An aircraft carrier is a dangerous device, but more dangerous than the carrier is the weapon that can send it to the bottom of the sea.”open image in galleryThe USS Gerald R. Ford off the coast of St Thomas Island, US Virgin Islands, on 24 January (Planet Labs PBC)Tehran’s sabre-rattling extended to closing the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since the 1980s this week to carry out naval drills. Thursday saw more drills, this time with Russia, in the Sea of Oman.The United States would not need to send its second aircraft carrier to the region for it to have a role in a potential conflict with Iran. Positioning the 333 metre nuclear-powered ship in the eastern Mediterranean would help protect Israel and Jordan if needed.US strengthens aerial optionsJordan is home to the Muwaffaq Salti military base, where Washington has been building up combat and cargo aircraft in recent days.Ageing F-15s and A-10 Warthogs have been pictured on the tarmac alongside C-130 transport aircraft. The US also still has around 10,000 troops scattered across bases in the region.Further afield, modern and long-distance aircraft open up Washington’s options for strikes. Flight trackers show the movement of Boeing KC-135 tankers to Europe and the Middle East, which suggest preparedness for longer haul flights. Last summer, B-2 bombers set off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, refuelling several times during flight, on a 36-hour round trip before striking Iran and returning home.open image in galleryF/A-18 Super Hornets from Strike Fighter Squadron 14 land on the deck of USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea (US Centcom)The US has moved more than 50