RAF Lakenheath | RAF Mildenhall | RAF Feltwell | NATO nuclear sharing

The U.K. has had a long history of involvement in the United States nuclear weapons programme. The U.K. hosted the first U.S. nuclear weapons overseas, an assortment of bombs for various types of bombers and aircraft. Britain has also uniquely been involved in the long term support of strategic nuclear forces hosting the largest overseas ballistic missile submarine base at Holy Loch. At the height of the Cold War the U.S. had twice as many warheads stored in Britain than were in the British arsenal. During the 1980s the U.K. earned a reputation as an "unsinkable aicraft carrier". Tactical naval nuclear weapons stored in Britain were allocated for use by Dutch forces as well as British and American. Today the sole remaining base used to store US nuclear weapons is RAF Lakenheath although RAF Mildenhall and RAF Feltwell in East Anglia also play important roles in the US nuclear weapons and Star Wars programmes.

RAF Lakenheath
RAF Lakenheath, located 20 miles northeast of Cambridge, is two miles from the village of Lakenheath. The base has always been the primary and most important tactical nuclear bombing base in Europe, hosting long-range F-111 fighter bomber aircraft through the early 1990’s, and today, hosting the F-15E Strike Eagle. The Weapon Storage and Security System (WS3) vaults at Lakenheath reached initial operational capability on November 19, 1994. Thirty-three are operational. Each bunker can hold up to four B-61 tactical nuclear weapons, with an explosive yield of between 0.4 and 80 kilotons.

Latest estimates put the number of US nuclear weapons stored at the base at 110.

Established by the RAF in November 1941 as a satellite base of RAF Mildenhall, it was closed for expansion from May 1944 to April 1947 and then allocated for U.S. use in July 1948. The 2d Bomb Group of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) arrived with B-29 bombers in August 1948. On January 16, 1951, when six B-36 bombers made their first deployment to Europe, Lakenheath was the host.

The initial U.S. unit at Lakenheath was the 7504th Base Completion Squadron assigned January 17, 1949. The Squadron was elevated to an Air Base Group (ABG) on January 28, 1950 and to a Wing (ABW) on September 26, 1950. When the base was formally transferred to SAC on April 28, 1951, it was placed under the 3909th ABG, which was activated May 16, 1951. The 3909th moved to RAF Greenham Common in 1954 and was replaced by the 3910th ABG, redesignated a Combat Support Group (CSG) on January 1, 1959 and inactivated January 1, 1960. SAC returned RAF Lakenheath to USAFE control on October 1, 1959 as part of Operation "Red Richard," and the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) arrived from Chaumont AB in France on January 15, 1960.

The 48th Fighter Wing received two USAF nuclear surety plaques in 1994, one "for demonstrating outstanding capability to support a nuclear airlift mission" and the other "for distinguished performance." The Wing again received a USAF Nuclear Surety Plaque in 1995 for "outstanding achievements" and "contributions" to nuclear security. That year, an officer within the 48th Equipment Maintenance Squadron received the USAF Lt. General Leo Marquez Award for outstanding munitions maintenance. The citation stated that the officer "led the squadron and wing to an `Excellent’ rating on their Joint Defense Nuclear Agency and Headquarters United States Air Forces in Europe Nuclear Surety Inspection and then initiated a cross-functional wing working group to address the wing’s conversion to the Weapons Storage and Security System." In 1996, the Wing was again recognized when it won the Department of Defense Phoenix Award as the most exceptional maintenance unit in the DOD.

US Airforce Lakenheath website

News about Lakenheath from CAAB (Campaign for Accountability of American Bases) newsletter: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, Latest/Stop Press News

For a paper map, use OS Landranger 143 Ely and Wisbech (2cm to 1km) OS Explorer 228 March & Ely (4cm to 1km)

RAF Mildenhall

RAF Mildenhall is a staging post for the US flights to Europe. This includes the nuclear weapons based in Europe under the NATO nuclear sharing agreement.

United States Airforce Mildenhall website

News about Mildenhall from CAAB (Campaign for Accountability of American Bases) newsletter: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, Latest/Stop Press News
Involvement of Mildenhall in CIA torture fights

For a paper map, use OS Landranger 143 Ely and Wisbech (2cm to 1km) OS Explorer 226 Ely & Newmarket (4cm to 1km)

RAF Feltwell
As part of the US Space Surveillance Network, RAF Feltwell hosts the US 5th Space Surveillance Squadron - which operates under the The US Space Command's 21st Space Wing.

The base is home to part of the USAF Deep Space Tracking System (DSTS) and the Near Space Facility, vital parts of the early warning and missile tracking technology necessary for US Missile Defence.

21st Space Wing website

News about Feltwell from CAAB (Campaign for Accountability of American Bases) newsletter: 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25, 26, 27, Incident at Feltwell (1994), Latest/Stop Press News

For a paper map, use OS Landranger 143 Ely and Wisbech (2cm to 1km) OS Explorer 228 March & Ely (4cm to 1km)