RAF Mildenhall to close. Lakenheath to get F-35 by 2020

[BOLLO]

Marshalls may well get their hands on Mildenhall after all.?? Wonder if LN will go 24hr re diverts for weather in Germany when it gets bad.What we looking at,4.5 7 years before it closes?? .Got a few years at least fingers crossed . Hoping Tom/Jane keep the camp site open [aka Johns feild] as LN will still be flying so can still go down for me weeks hols at least.Just a wee bit dead at the weekends .

[andrew b]

Wonder how long it will be before there are no military airfields left in the UK.I would not be at all suprised if the government came up with some far fetched silly scheme like sharing Heathrow and gatwick with mil aircraft.

[Andy_99]

Maybe the 95th RS end up at Fairford

[Gary]

Thread name changed and made a sticky

[BOLLO]

Gonna miss QUID call sign,MARK does not have the same ring to it .

[Snoop 95]

No mention of Feltwell, Fairford or Menwith Hill so I guess they are all staying.
With hindsight I suppose the inactivation of 3rd Air Force at Mildenhall in the early noughties and subsequent reactivation at Ramstein was 'writing on the wall'.

[Vulcanone]

Well lets face it.

And with close to 40 years out of 44 watching aviation (mostly Military of course)

1
An airfield being overhauled and upgraded is usually done with money assigned to it, witness the recladding of the hangars/hangars (delete whichever doesn't apply) at Binbrook 18 months before the Lightnings were retired.

2
Find me a single politician that know much about defence, or cares (unless said airfield happens to be in his constituency)

3
I guess all them rumours about Fairford have started to make sense now....(RC-135s to FFD anyone)

4
Oh and how many times does it have to be pointed out the Treasury holds the purse strings and gives X departments x amount to fight over. Leaving the rest with the end result, Oh dear I cannot afford X znd Y. So I will have to close or scrap that....

Do really think Davis Cameron has an inkling of what the RAF operates and wakes up thinking I know I will close the following, or retire this next year?

Meanwhile time to find a new hobby perhaps....

Ta ta


All the best


Tim S

[Snoop 95]

It seems that the F15's will go as the F35's take their place (2 squadrons instead of three as now), so I fail to see how that will require and extra 1200 personnel as is being stated. Maybe there will be some further role for Lakenheath, or are they just trying to soften the blow by massaging figures?

[tm74sqn]

Become a train spotter - whoops! I mean railway enthusiast. Just need to have the operation . . . .
TM74

[Supra]

The report it seems to suggest that the F-15s will be staying as they are moving an additional 1,200 personnel to LN to support the F-35. Unless they need an additional 1,200 people to support F-35?

"The removal of 3,200 people from Mildenhall will be offset by the addition of 1,200 personnel at Lakenheath, who will be added to support new missions like the arrival of the F-35 fighters, according to the Pentagon."

'1200 personnel to support F-35'.... who's gonna maintain the other 42 aircraft?? (unless of course they are 'paper jets' = only exist on paper.)
More seriously,
Besides the loss of millions of Dollars to the area, that only leaves an undisclosed percentage of 2000 people, Civilian Contractors jobless & unable to contribute fully to the local economy, but they're not American Voters, so that's ok.
I'm shocked it's Mildenhall & not the 'Heath that's got chopped, but with all the recent upgrades of taxiway, buildings, etc the old measure of a Base's longevity proves correct again! "If it gets a new fence or runway it'll shut next Year"
LN supporters should not celebrate too quickly. Nothing about the F-35 'Latening' has happened on time yet. With the Hall due to close by 2020 & LN getting 'all 6 Latenings' by 2020 soonest, I can for-see a situation where the F15E is long gone Stateside, the F-15 C/D are forward located to the current / yet unknown hot-spot & LN comes under the beady eye of the accountants!
Wasn't the whole purpose of forming the Air Expeditionary Forces to have a facility to move a coherent fighting force to where it's required, They are only 8 hours from LN & any future war is unlikely to be over STANTA! They may as well route direct to the FOL. than sit at LN. waiting for the next geographic bun-fight.
Okay, take the 100th to Ramstein (the crews & families will love it there??) In return we want the TDY Tanker rotation from Geilenkirchen to Fairford along with the 95th RS.
PS:- Photographic opportunities outside Spangdahlem are sh*te!

[POL]

You know, I'm starting to get the feeling you don't like the F-35?

[Bluetail]

New home for RIAT ??

[Thunder]

Mildenhall(which I remind you is USAF and not RAF) set to close and we have people in states of despair and suicidal thoughts, the thread is made a sticky and everyone one that holds any kind of office is criticized including David Cameron who I guess hardly had any say in the matter? Kinloss, Leuchars close and they hardly got a mention by most on here.

The writing has been on the wall for Mildenhall for years, more and more 'Reach' flights are heading to Ramstein/Stuttgart and the SOG have always wanted to be closer to their area of operations. It's the scale back of Lajes that puzzles me, maybe that'll mean more aircraft transiting the Northern route via Lossiemouth and Keflavik.

.

[TankBuster]

Well, that's a bit of a blow to say the least .

I never thought we'd ever see the USAF pull out of Mildenhall, but it just goes to show that nothing lasts forever.
So, the plan is to re-locate resources and/or absorb units from Mildenhall into other facilities, in order to save money and still maintain the current USAFE capability?
This is the trend with many services / businesses/ industries nowadays... Welcome to 2015!

A very sad day indeed, but we all know its a sign of the times. I really cant imagine what uncertainty this must bring for the people directly affected by this announcement. But, as an aircraft enthusiast with a strong USAFE interest I will enjoy it while it lasts and be grateful that we will still have the fences of Lakenheath to cling to in the years to come.


TankBuster

[capturedwings]

Don't get it really as the Raf rc135 can't take off from waddington with a full load of fuel. So has to land and top up, closing the base where they land to refuel is senseless. makes more sense to relocate waddington aircraft to the hall. Even with the runway being redone at waddington it's still not long enough.

[Vulcanone]

Even if the KC-135s are moving to Spangdahlem I suspect they will still be out and about over this side of the channel.

If the RC-135s are staying in the UK, then they won't be far away.

That is a guess mind

TS

[Vulcanone]

Well you have (about) 5 years left....


http://www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123435798


Tim

[BOLLO]

Don't get it really as the Raf rc135 can't take off from waddington with a full load of fuel. So has to land and top up, closing the base where they land to refuel is senseless. makes more sense to relocate waddington aircraft to the hall. Even with the runway being redone at waddington it's still not long enough.

Land and top up,what about AAR ??

[BOLLO]

Well we got at least 5 years left.Not a lot we can do so I'm just gonna go down as much as I can weather permitting and movements permiting and have a great time with most of the boys/girls down there that I have made freinds with over the years .

[stigorige]

To comment on your earlier post about the classic QUID callsign being lost Paul, I guess they'll call EURO
The Germans are gonna love CV22 approaches at night!
To be honest I can't imagine Mildenhall without flying, I wonder what will happen to the dissused field.
HMP Beck Row perhaps, or will Marshalls step in?