2014 War Against the Islamic State

Brimstone in the 2014 War Against the Islamic State

The Royal Air Force used Brimstone missiles from Tornado GR4 and later Typhoon FGR4 aircraft during Operation Shader, striking Islamic State vehicles, fighting positions, oilfield equipment, and riverine targets in Iraq and Syria.

Weapon profileBrimstone
SideAnti-ISIS coalition and partner forcesRoleFire SupportInterdictionAnti-ArmorLong-Range Strike
Brimstone, Anti-tank guided missile, Munitions - 2014 War Against the Islamic State
Image source: File:MBDA Brimstone (45372527695).jpg

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
RAF Tornado GR4 aircraft used Brimstone during Operation Shader in Iraq in December 2015.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes December 2015

RAF Tornados used Brimstone in Syria against Islamic State support and mobility equipment in January and February 2016.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes January 2016, RAF Air Strikes February 2016

RAF Brimstone employment included close air support and interdiction against positions, vehicles, and truck bombs.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes June 2016, RAF Air Strikes October 2018

Typhoon FGR4 conducted its first operational Brimstone 2 firing in the fight against Daesh in February 2019.

Sources: RAF Typhoons Use Brimstone

Brimstone 2 entered RAF Tornado service in 2016 and was later integrated on Typhoon under Project Centurion.

Sources: Improved Brimstone Enters Service, RAF Typhoons Use Brimstone

Timeline

Brimstone In 2014 War Against the Islamic State

  1. RAF Tornados use Brimstone near Ramadi

    UK MOD reporting said Tornado GR4 aircraft supporting Iraqi forces in western Ramadi engaged an Islamic State mortar position with a Brimstone missile.

    Sources: RAF Air Strikes December 2015

  2. Brimstone attacks cranes in Syria

    RAF Tornados used Brimstone missiles against mobile cranes used by Daesh to repair coalition strike damage in Syria.

    Sources: RAF Air Strikes January 2016

  3. Tornado Brimstone strike in a Syrian oilfield

    A Tornado patrol north of Abu Kamal used two Brimstone missiles against a large engineering vehicle in a Daesh-controlled oilfield.

    Sources: RAF Air Strikes February 2016

  4. Brimstone destroys a truck bomb near Dayr az Zawr

    MOD reporting said a Brimstone missile hit a concealed truck bomb north of Dayr az Zawr, with the ensuing explosion confirming the vehicle was heavily laden with explosives.

    Sources: RAF Air Strikes June 2016

  5. Tornado strike supports the SDF near Abu Kamal

    Tornados destroyed an Islamic State truck bomb with a Brimstone missile after it blocked an SDF advance toward a strong-point in eastern Syria.

    Sources: RAF Air Strikes October 2018

  6. First operational Brimstone 2 firing from Typhoon

    A Typhoon FGR4 used a Brimstone 2 missile against a boat used by Daesh south of Baghuz Fawqani during the final eastern Syria territorial fighting.

    Sources: RAF Typhoons Use Brimstone

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

UK Ministry of Defence strike logs directly document RAF Brimstone use in the war against the Islamic State. On December 7, 2015, Tornado GR4 aircraft supporting Iraqi forces near Ramadi engaged an Islamic State mortar position with a Brimstone missile, and on December 8 Tornados conducted two Brimstone attacks west of Qayyara.

The same official reporting series records repeated Brimstone employment in 2016, including attacks on mobile cranes and cave entrances in January, an Islamic State vehicle in northern Iraq and an oilfield engineering vehicle in Syria in February, and fighting positions, a truck bomb, and a light machine-gun position in June.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes December 2015, RAF Air Strikes January 2016, RAF Air Strikes February 2016, RAF Air Strikes June 2016

Timeline

The earliest detailed public MOD entries in this record are from December 2015, after the UK Parliament authorized strikes in Syria and RAF operations continued over Iraq. Those reports show Brimstone used for close air support in Iraq before the monthly logs began recording Syrian Brimstone strikes against oilfield-repair and mobility equipment in January and February 2016.

By October 2018, RAF Tornados and Typhoons were supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces around the Hajin pocket in eastern Syria; MOD reporting said Tornados used Brimstone against a truck bomb blocking an SDF advance and that RAF aircraft later used Paveway IVs and a Brimstone missile against mortar positions and a weapons stockpile near Hajin. In February 2019, the MOD reported the first operational firing of Brimstone 2 from a Typhoon FGR4, against a boat used by Daesh south of Baghuz Fawqani.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes December 2015, RAF Air Strikes October 2018, RAF Typhoons Use Brimstone

Narrative

Brimstone appeared in this conflict as a British coalition air-launched precision weapon, not as Islamic State equipment. The documented users were RAF Tornado GR4 crews during the main Tornado phase of Operation Shader and RAF Typhoon FGR4 crews after Brimstone integration moved onto Typhoon under Project Centurion.

The strike logs show a varied target set rather than a single anti-tank mission. Brimstone was used against mortar teams, vehicles, checkpoints, cave entrances, fighting positions, truck bombs, engineering equipment, mobile cranes, and a boat. The supported ground forces named in the official releases included Iraqi forces, Kurdish forces, moderate Syrian opposition fighters, and the Syrian Democratic Forces.

The MOD's 2019 Typhoon release links the Brimstone 2 firing to the final territorial campaign against Islamic State in eastern Syria, when the SDF were clearing the remaining pocket around the Euphrates. That use extended Brimstone's role from Tornado-carried close air support and interdiction into the RAF's post-Tornado Typhoon strike package.

Sources: RAF Air Strikes February 2016, RAF Air Strikes October 2018, RAF Typhoons Use Brimstone, Improved Brimstone Enters Service

Related Weapons by Role

Storm Shadow, Air-launched cruise missile, MunitionsMunitionsStorm ShadowAir-launched cruise missileStorm Shadow is the UK name for the Franco-British Storm Shadow/SCALP air-launched cruise missile, a low-observable deep-strike weapon built by MBDA for precision attacks on hardened or high-value fixed targets. RAF Tornado GR4s used Storm Shadow from the Iraq War through Libya and the April 2018 U.S., UK, and French strikes in the 2011 Syrian Civil War, UK-supplied missiles later gave Ukraine a longer-range conventional strike option from adapted Su-24 aircraft, UK parliamentary records document Saudi use in Yemen, and the UK-France 2025 defence declaration tied new SCALP and Storm Shadow acquisition to production-line upgrades.
LMM Martlet, Laser-guided lightweight multirole missile, Air DefenseAir DefenseLMM MartletLaser-guided lightweight multirole missileLMM Martlet is a British Thales-built lightweight multirole missile used as a short-range air-defense and anti-surface weapon. The 13 kg laser-guided missile is associated with Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters, Stormer-based short-range air-defense launchers, Ukrainian air-defense aid, and British counter-drone operations, giving it a compact role against drones, helicopters, small maritime craft, light vehicles, and other fast targets.
Paveway IV guided bomb, Dual-mode precision-guided bomb, MunitionsMunitionsPaveway IV guided bombDual-mode precision-guided bombPaveway IV is a Raytheon UK 500-pound-class precision-guided bomb built around GPS-aided inertial navigation, laser guidance, and an electronic fuze. It became a core RAF air-to-ground weapon after entering UK service in 2008, moved from Harrier and Tornado carriage to Typhoon and F-35B integration, and is documented in RAF counter-ISIS strikes, UK-led Red Sea Crisis strikes on Houthi military sites, and Saudi-led coalition air operations in Yemen.
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Sources