RAF Mildenhall

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RAF Mildenhall
Part of US Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa
Mildenhall, Suffolk in England
A Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker of the 100th ARW at RAF Mildenhall.
Ut aquilae volent (Latin for That eagles may fly)
Mildenhall Shown within Suffolk
Coordinates	52°21′54″N 000°28′51″E / 52.36500°N 0.48083°E / 52.36500; 0.48083Coordinates: 52°21′54″N 000°28′51″E / 52.36500°N 0.48083°E / 52.36500; 0.48083
Type	RAF station (US Visiting Forces)
Area	482 hectares
Site information
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	16 October 1934 (1934-10-16) – 1 September 1950) (RAF) (1950 – present) USAF
Controlled by	US Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa
Website	www.mildenhall.af.mil
Site history
Built	1934 (1934)
In use	1934 - present
Garrison information
Garrison	100th Air Refueling Wing 352d Special Operations Wing 501st Combat Support Wing
Airfield information
Identifiers	IATA: MHZ, ICAO: EGUN, WMO: 03577
Elevation	10 metres (33 ft) AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 11/29 2,810 metres (9,219 ft) Concrete/Asphalt

Tail of a 100 ARW Boeing KC-135R-BN Stratotanker, AF Serial No. 58-0100, displaying the badge of RAF Mildenhall and the historic 'Square D' badge as used by the unit during the Second World War

Royal Air Force Mildenhall, more commonly known as RAF Mildenhall, (IATA: MHZ, ICAO: EGUN) is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located near Mildenhall in Suffolk, England.

Despite its status as a Royal Air Force station, it primarily supports United States Air Force (USAF) operations, and is currently the home of the 100th Air Refueling Wing (100 ARW).

On 8 January 2015, the United States Department of Defense announced that operations at RAF Mildenhall would end (along with those at RAF Molesworth and RAF Alconbury), and be relocated to Germany (Spangdahlem Air Base) and also elsewhere within the UK.^[1]

On 18 January 2016, the British Ministry of Defence announced that the site is to be sold.^[2]

Units[edit]

RAF Mildenhall hosts units from four different major USAF commands – Air Combat Command, Air Force Special Operations Command, Air Mobility Command and United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE); as well as units of the United States Navy.

• 352d Special Operations Wing (AFSOC)
• 95th Reconnaissance Squadron (ACC)
  part of 55th Wing, 55th Operations Group, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska
• 488th Intelligence Squadron (ACC)
  part of 55th Wing, 55th Operations Group Intelligence Wing, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska
• 727th Air Mobility Squadron (AMC)
  part of 721st Air Mobility Operations Group, Ramstein Air Base, Germany
• Fleet Industrial Supply Center Mildenhall (COMUSNAVEUR)

RAF Mildenhall, together with its sister base RAF Lakenheath, have the largest United States Air Force presence in the United Kingdom.

100th Air Refueling Wing[edit]

The host unit at RAF Mildenhall is the 100th Air Refueling Wing (100 ARW), which deploys aircraft for and manages the European Tanker Task Force, a rotational force which provides air refuelling to US and NATO aircraft in the European Theatre. It is the only permanent USAF air refuelling wing in the European theatre, activated at RAF Mildenhall on 1 February 1992. The wing provides the critical air refuelling 'bridge' that allows the Expeditionary Air Force to deploy around the globe with the appropriate urgency.

The tactical component of the 100 ARW is the 351st Air Refueling Squadron (351 ARS), flying the Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker.

501st Combat Support Wing[edit]

The 501st Combat Support Wing (501 CSW) was activated at RAF Mildenhall on 21 May 2005. It is a non-flying unit that provides administration and operation of the various smaller Air Force units scattered across the UK that are considered Geographically Separate Units (GSU):

• 422d Air Base Group, RAF Croughton
• 423d Air Base Group, RAF Alconbury
• 420th Air Base Group, RAF Fairford

It was moved to RAF Alconbury in 2010.

352d Special Operations Wing[edit]

The 352d Special Operations Wing (352 SOW) is the air force component for US Special Operations Command Europe, a sub-unified command of the US European Command. It transferred to RAF Mildenhall on 17 February 1995, from RAF Alconbury. The 352 SOW has two flying squadrons, a maintenance squadron, an operations support squadron and a special tactics squadron.

The mission of the 352 SOW is to serve as the focal point for all US Air Force special operations activities throughout the European theatre, including Africa and the Middle East. The 352 SOW is tasked to conduct a variety of high priority, low-visibility missions supporting US and allied special operations forces throughout the European theatre during peacetime, joint operations exercises and combat operations.

The 352d SOW develops and implements peacetime and wartime contingency plans. It effectively uses fixed-wing and personnel assets in infiltration by, exfiltration by and resupplying of US and allied special operations forces.

The tactical components of the 352nd SOW are the:

• 7th Special Operations Squadron (Lockheed MC-130 Talon II and Bell Boeing CV-22 Osprey aircraft)
• 67th Special Operations Squadron (Lockheed MC-130J Commando II aircraft)
• 321st Special Tactics Squadron
• 352d Special Operations Support Squadron
• 352d Special Operations Maintenance Squadron
• Joint Special Operations Air Component-Europe (JSOAC-E)

95th Reconnaissance Squadron[edit]

The 95th Reconnaissance Squadron (95 RS) of the US Air Force conducts RC-135 Rivet Joint flight operations in the European and Mediterranean theatres of operations; as tasked by National Command Authorities and European Command. It was activated at RAF Mildenhall on 1 July 1994, having been previously assigned to RAF Alconbury.

The squadron provides all operational management, aircraft maintenance, administration, and intelligence support to produce politically sensitive real-time intelligence data vital to national foreign policy.

The 95 RS supports RC-135, OC-135, and E-4 missions when theatre deployed.

488th Intelligence Squadron[edit]

The 488th Intelligence Squadron (488 IS) is a component of the Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Agency (AFISRA). The unit's primary mission is the collection, analysis, and reporting of signals intelligence about foreign command and control, communications, and weapons systems. Currently assigned to the 488th Intelligence Squadron for administrative purposes is Operating Location Souda Bay, Crete.

The present 488th Intelligence Squadron traces its lineage back to the 6954th Security Squadron which was originally designated Detachment 1 of the 6985th SS at RAF Upper Heyford, England, in June 1967. The unit was transferred to RAF Mildenhall, England, and in August 1970, and in 1974 was designated as the 6954th SS.

In August 1979, the 6954th Security Squadron was re-designated as the 6988th Electronic Security Squadron in honour of the unit that operated out of Yokota, Japan, for nearly 20 years.^[3] On 9 January 1981, the 6988th ESS received the first operational deployment of the 'Block III' electronically modernised RC-135 Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft. The unit was also responsible for the maintenance of Lockheed U-2R reconnaissance aircraft deployed for Central European Theater operations during the Cold War until 10 February 1982, when the TR-1 variant of that aircraft replaced it.^[4] In November 1990, the operations of all RC-135 aircraft in the European theatre were assigned to the 6988th ESS upon the inactivation of the 6916th Electronic Security Squadron at Hellenikon Air Base, Greece. Until Hellenikon operations ceased in March 1991, they were conducted through the unit's OL-RH detachment.

In October 1991, the 6988th ESS became part of the Air Force Intelligence Command (AFIC), a consolidation of the Air Force's intelligence operations and the successor to the ESC. On 1 October 1993, the unit was re-designated the 488th Intelligence Squadron. In February 2000, the 488th IS operated the first 'Baseline 8' RC-135W reconnaissance aircraft which was a major external reconfiguration of that platform.^[4] On 1 October 2002, the 488th IS was re-aligned from the 67th Information Operations Wing to the 55th Wing to consolidate all operations of the different RC-135 platforms. The unit is now part of the AFISRA, which became the successor of the AIA in June 2008.

The 488th Intelligence Squadron, under its different unit designations, has received nine Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards.^{[citation needed]}

727th Air Mobility Squadron[edit]

The 727th Air Mobility Squadron (727 AMS) is a unit of the US 721st Air Mobility Operations Group, based at Ramstein AB, Germany.

The 727 AMS is part of AMC's en-route system that provides fixed and deployed maintenance, aerial port, and command and control support to deployed command forces across the globe. The squadron has all the necessary support, such as fleet service, maintenance, and passenger service to allow aircraft and crews to quickly depart for their next destination or stay overnight for crew rest.

The squadron was redesignated as the 727 AMS on 15 March 2001. Prior to that, it was designated as the 627th Air Mobility Support Squadron assigned to the 621st Air Mobility Support Group. The change in designation was undertaken to better reflect the operations nature of the group's overall mission as an operational rather than support one.

Fleet Industrial Supply Center Sigonella, Detachment Mildenhall[edit]

Beech C-45 Expediter and Douglas C-117D Super Dakota communications aircraft of NAF Mildenhall at their home base in 1966

FISCSI Mildenhall is a US Navy detachment of Fleet Industrial Supply Center Sigonella, Italy. The detachment was originally an aviation command known as Naval Air Facility Mildenhall, supporting Commander, US Naval Forces Europe (COMUSNAVEUR) headquarters in London. As NAF Mildenhall, the command was home to three Navy UC-12 Huron aircraft, and provided support for transient US Navy and US Marine Corps aircraft. With the fall of the Soviet Union, the frequency of US naval aircraft transiting RAF Mildenhall dissipated, and with COMUSNAVEUR's subsequent relocation to Naples, Italy, the command's UC-12 aircraft were also reassigned. After being at RAF Mildenhall for more than 40 years, NAF Mildenhall was disestablished in 2005, downsized and then re-established as FISCSI Det Mildenhall. The mission of FISCSI Det Mildenhall is U.S. Navy fleet support in the United Kingdom and Northern Europe. The support includes receiving and shipping high priority parts and mail to the US naval units within that area.^[5]

History[edit]

RAF Mildenhall is named after the nearby town of Mildenhall, Suffolk. It was established as a Royal Air Force station in 1930, and opened in 1934.^[6] During World War II, RAF Bomber Command used the station for operational combat missions until 1945.

Placed on standby status after the war, it was reopened by the Royal Air Force and became a USAF-RAF joint operation base on 11 July 1950. Assigned to Strategic Air Command (SAC) to station B-29 Superfortress bombers that date. It became a B-50 Superfortress base in 1952, and a B-47 Stratojet and KC-97 Stratofreighter base in 1953 until 1958.

Closed for runway repairs throughout 1958, the Military Air Transport Service transferred its main United Kingdom terminal to Mildenhall from RAF Burtonwood on 1 March 1959; and the base became 'The Gateway to the United Kingdom', for most U.S. military personnel and dependants arriving or departing the United Kingdom since.

Assigned from Strategic Air Command to United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) on 1 September 1959, and RAF relinquished joint operations status that date. Has been in continuous USAFE operation to present.

Major US Air Force units assigned[edit]

Reference^[7]

Operational history[edit]

Origins[edit]

RAF Mildenhall opened on 16 October 1934. King George V reviewed 350 aircraft there in 1935 on the occasion of his Silver Jubilee. This historical event is commemorated by a memorial tablet located in front of the Building 562, the current 100 ARW headquarters. During World War II, Mildenhall became a bomber station, flying Vickers Wellingtons, Short Stirlings and Avro Lancasters. It was also the headquarters of 3 Group Bomber Command. From 1950, Mildenhall became home to bombers and later tanker aircraft of the United States Air Force. Throughout the 1950s, Strategic Air Command bomber units were deployed on a regular rotational basis from the United States to the United Kingdom. The B-47 Stratojet was a familiar sight in the skies over RAF Mildenhall and RAF Upper Heyford at this time, as entire wings deployed on 90-day rotations. From 1976 to 1990, the SR-71 Blackbird was flown out of Mildenhall by Detachment 4 of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing of the USAF. RAF Mildenhall was, until 2003, the home of the largest military-sponsored air show in Europe, when it was cancelled because of increasing operational requirements.

In order to meet a perceived 'continental threat', the British military developed the idea to site an RAF bomber base at Mildenhall in the late 1920s. Shortly thereafter, the government purchased the land in 1929, followed by the completion of the first buildings in 1931. Three years later, RAF Mildenhall opened on 16 October 1934, as one of the RAF's largest bomber stations. On the same day, Wing Commander Francis Linnell,^[8] O.B.E. assumed his position as the base's first station commander. Although open, the base had yet to receive its first complement of military aircraft.

RAF Mildenhall's premature inauguration was due in large part with its selection to host the Royal Aero Club's prestigious MacRobertson Air Race on 20 October 1934. At the time, the air race stood as the longest race ever devised, and attracted over 70,000 spectators to the base. Even more telling of the race's significance in the world's sporting spotlight, on short notice King George V and Queen Mary visited RAF Mildenhall the day before the race. In the end, pilots Tom Campbell Black and C. W. A. Scott flying the de Havilland Comet Grosvenor House, crossed the finish line first at Melbourne, Australia, less than 72 hours after starting the race.

Following this propitious beginning, RAF Mildenhall received its first squadron and aircraft with the arrival of 99B Squadron, equipped with Handley Page Heyford bombers.

The threat the RAF had envisioned in the late 1920s materialised during the Munich Crisis. Between 26 September 1938 and 4 October 1939, the base completed its installation of its defence systems. After a brief reprieve from war, the base prepared for war, bringing station defences and squadrons to full combat readiness. On 3 September 1939, three days after Germany invaded Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Later that same day, three Wellington aircraft from Mildenhall were dispatched to bomb the German naval fleet at Wilhelmshaven.

World War II[edit]

Throughout World War II, RAF Mildenhall remained active as in addition to its own airfield, the base had responsibility for Newmarket, Tuddenham, and Lakenheath. During the course of the war, the base witnessed the transition from the two-engine Wellington, to the four-engine Short Stirling, and finally to the Avro Lancaster.

In 1941, RAF Mildenhall was used for the making of the film Target for Tonight. So as not to give away important information to the enemy, RAF Mildenhall took the fictitious name of 'Millerton Aerodrome' and several other aspects were altered involving the day-to-day operations. The film, produced by the Crown Film Unit, focused on the planning and execution of an air raid on Germany, as seen by the crew of Vickers Wellington OJ-F 'F for Freddie'. Dickson, the captain of 'F for Freddie', was played by Percy Pickard, who went on to lead Operation Biting and the later Operation Jericho raids on Amiens Prison, in which he was killed.

For the duration of the war, except for a brief period to have concrete runways laid in 1943, RAF Mildenhall was involved in most of RAF Bomber Command's offensives and was attacked several times by the German Luftwaffe but was never out of commission for more than a day.

By the end of the war, aircraft from RAF Mildenhall and its satellite airfields had dropped over 23,000 tons of explosives, laid 2,000 mines and flew over 8,000 sorties. The base also saw the loss of over 200; Wellington, Stirling, and Lancaster bombers with the loss of over 2,000 aircrew. One of those killed, was Pilot Officer Rawdon Hume Middleton, an Australian who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross (VC) and is buried at St. Johns Church ^[9] cemetery in Beck Row after his body was washed ashore.^[10]

After the war, Aircraft from RAF Mildenhall flew home repatriated prisoners of war in Operation Exodus, and participated in Operation Manna, dropping relief supplies to the Dutch people stranded by the flooding caused by the retreating German Wehrmacht. By the end of 1945, Mildenhall's operational activity experienced a drastic decrease and despite a brief flurry of flying activity in the late 1940s, the RAF reduced the base to 'care and maintenance' status. The only remaining RAF unit of significance was Headquarters No 3 Group, Bomber Command, which remained on station until 1967.

The following units operated from Mildenhall:^[11]

USAF use of RAF Mildenhall[edit]

After the 1950 invasion of South Korea by Communist forces, it was decided to re-establish a strong American force in Europe.^{[citation needed]} On 11 July 1950, RAF Mildenhall was made available to the United States Air Force by the British Ministry of Defence as a Strategic Air Command (SAC) B-29 Superfortress base, with joint operations with the Royal Air Force units.

Prior to Strategic Air Command's role at RAF Mildenhall, Headquarters United States Air Forces in Europe established Third Air Force at South Ruslip Air Station^[12] in 1948, to command B-29 operations in England. Third Air Force was subsequently placed directly under USAF orders, with Strategic Air Command establishing the 7th Air Division Headquarters at RAF Mildenhall. The collocation of the two headquarters within the United Kingdom allowed HQ USAFE to discharge its responsibilities in England, while at the same time allowing Strategic Air Command to continue in its deterrent role while retaining operational control over flying activities at RAF Mildenhall.

Strategic Air Command use[edit]

Boeing B-50D

Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter, 1951

Boeing RB-47H-1-BW Stratojet AF Serial No. 53-2496

The initial Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit to use RAF Mildenhall was the 7511th Air Base Group (later redesignated 3910th AB Group), being activated on 11 July 1950, to prepare the facility for operational use by SAC aircraft.

On 1 May 1951, Strategic Air Command took control of the station rotated Bomb Wings in and out of Mildenhall on temporary duty assignments. The first operational strategic unit to use the base was the Boeing B-50D Superfortress equipped 2d Bomb Wing, arriving on Temporary Duty (TDY) 4 May 1951 from Hunter AFB Georgia, departing on 12 December 1951.

Other rotational strategic bomb wings at Mildenhall were:

• 22d Bombardment Wing^[13] (7 September 1951 – 12 December 1951) (B-50D, KB-29P)
  (TDY from March AFB California)
• 93d Bombardment Wing^[14] (16 December 1951 – 8 March 1952) (B-50D, KB-29P)
  (TDY from Castle AFB California)
• 509th Bombardment Wing^[15] (4 June 1952 – 2 September 1952) (B-50D, KB-29P)
  (TDY from Walker AFB New Mexico)

In 1953 RAF Mildenhall's mission was changed from a B-50 bomber base to a Boeing B-47 Stratojet and KC-97 Stratofreighter aerial tanker dispersal base. This series of temporary deployments generally involved an entire wing of about 40 B-47s and about 20 tankers being held at readiness for several months, then being relieved by another unit that was based at a different airfield in the UK with the bombers and tankers also at different airfields. In this way SAC could spread out its potential as a Soviet target by placing its short range B-47s, weapons, and personnel on a ring of overseas bases from Greenland to North Africa, of which Mildenhall was one.

• 55th Air Refueling Squadron (April 1953 – June 1954) (KB-50, KB-29P)
  (TDY from Ramey AFB, Puerto Rico)
• 306th Air Refueing Squadron (June 1953 - September 1953) (KC-97)
  (TDY from MacDill AFB, Florida)
• 305th Air Refueling Squadron (September 1953 – December 1953) (KC-97)
  (TDY from MacDill AFB, Florida)
• 22d Air Refueling Squadron (7 December 1953 – 5 March 1954) (KC-97)
  (TDY from March AFB, California)
• 303d Air Refueling Group (17 March 1954 – 5 June 1954) (KC-97)
  (TDY from Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona)
• 1370th Photo Mapping Group (June 1954 – September 1954) (RB-50G) (Photographic Reconnaissance)
  (TDY from Morrison AFB, Florida)
• 97th Bombardment Wing (Summer 1954) (RB-50E/G, KB-29P) (Electronic Reconnaissance)
  (TDY from Biggs AFB, Texas)
• 43d Air Refueling Group (August 1954 – December 1954) (KC-97)
  (TDY from Carswell AFB, Texas)
• 306th Air Refueling Squadron (7 December 1953 – 5 March 1954) (KC-97)
  (TDY from MacDill AFB, Florida)
• 98th Air Refueling Squadron (7 November 1955 – 31 January 1956) (KC-97)
  (TDY from Lincoln AFB, Nebraska)
• Mildenhall Task Force (Provisional) (1 July 1956 – May 1958) (RB/ERB-47H) (Electronic Reconnaissance and Countermeasures)
  (TDY from 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, Forbes AFB, Kansas)
• 380th Air Refueling Squadron (3 April 1957 – 3 July 1957) (KC-97)
  (TDY from Shilling AFB, Kansas)
• 44th Air Refueling Squadron (Autumn 1957) (KC-97)
  (TDY from Chennault AFB, Louisiana)

These TDYs became a heavy burden for both SAC as well as Military Air Transport Service (MATS), which had to transport thousands of personnel and tons of material to and from the United States in just a few days to support these rotations. In 1958, it was decided that these rotational TDYs would be replaced by a new system of overseas deployments called Reflex. From then on, rather than being deployed for a few months, a permanent SAC presence would be established at bases with aircraft being deployed for three weeks from several SAC bases, being kept on full alert status ready for instant takeoff at their 'Reflex Bases'.

Route of Mildenhall Task Forces RB-47H

The RB-47s based at RAF Mildenhall performed some of the most sensitive reconnaissance missions of the Cold War. During its service, at least two of these planes were lost flying missions over the Soviet Union. One incident occurred during a photographic mission over the Soviet Union. The plane was intercepted and fired upon by Soviet MiGs and sustained wing damage. Fortunately, it was able to outrun them at altitude and return to RAF Mildenhall. The RB-47s were eventually phased out and replaced with the Lockheed U-2 and SR-71. (See 306th Strategic Wing below)

In 1958 and the first half of 1959, the RAF Mildenhall runway was closed for repairs, and on 1 September 1959, the Royal Air Force ceased regular flying operations, making the USAF the sole operator of the base.

The host base SAC support unit at RAF Mildenhall was the 3910th Air Base Group, changing to the 3932d AB Squadron and lastly 3934th AB Squadron. These units provided the administrative, maintenance and logistical support necessary to the rotating operational wings and squadrons.

7513th Tactical Group[edit]

WB-50D of the 58th Weather Squadron

Strategic Air Command departed RAF Mildenhall in 1959, as its runway requirements no longer met the requirements for its newer aircraft. On 17 July 1959, SAC and USAFE reached an agreement facilitating and substantially increasing Third Air Force's role in making operational decisions regarding the US Air Force units in the UK. On 1 July 1959, USAFE took control of Mildenhall from SAC and the 7543d Air Base Squadron was activated by USAFE as the host unit. On 1 September the 7513th Tactical Group took over host unit responsibilities.

RAF Mildenhall became the home for the Military Air Transport Service (later Military Airlift Command) main air passenger terminal for the United Kingdom on 1 March 1959 with the 1625th Support Squadron providing military personnel and dependents service at the terminal with the drawdown at the Burtonwood Air Depot.

The 53d Weather Squadron was transferred to Mildenhall from RAF Alconbury on 10 August 1959, flying WB-50D Superfortresses and was assigned with collecting weather data that was transmitted to weather stations for use in preparing forecasts required for the Air Force Military Air Transport Service (MATS) and the U.S. Weather Bureau. It was inactivated on 18 March 1960.

On 15 November 1965, Mildenhall welcomed the arrival of the Silk Purse Control Group and the 7120th Airborne Command and Control Squadron (7120 ACCS) previously stationed at Chateauroux Air Station, France. Upon its arrival at Mildenhall, the 7120th ACCS converted from C-118s^[16] to EC-135s which were used as airborne command posts under the code name Operation Silk Purse.

513th Tactical Airlift Wing[edit]

SAC Lockheed TR-1A of the 95th Recon Squadron

USAF Lockheed SR-71B Blackbird, taken December 1994 from an in-flight refuelling tanker

306th Air Refueling Squadron KC-10 Arriving at RAF Mildenhall 1986

Seven KC-135R Stratotankers move on the RAF Mildenhall taxiway as part of a training mission to validate maintenance and operational capabilities

On 1 July 1966, the 513th Troop Carrier Wing arrived at Mildenhall from Evreux-Fauville Air Base France. With its activation on Mildenhall, the 513th TCW assumed operational control of two rotational (7441st, 7742d) Troop Carrier Squadrons of twenty MAC C-130 Hercules and received the 7120th ACCS / Silk Purse Control Group from Chateauroux Air Station, France, and the five Boeing EC-135H 'Silk Purse' Flying Command Posts for European Command.^[17]

On 8 July 1958, the US Air Force redesignated the 513 TCW the 513th Tactical Airlift Wing (513 TAW), with no change in its mission.

For the next four years, RAF Mildenhall witnessed little change, with only the 10th ACCS replacing the 7120th ACCS on 1 January 1970, and assuming its mission. However, in June 1972, the base added to the list of its tenants with the arrival of Headquarters Third Air Force, which relocated from South Ruislip Air Station.

In May 1969 mechanic Sgt Paul Meyer, homesick for his wife in Virginia, stole a Hercules C-130E transporter and flew south, eventually ditching in the English Channel. In April 2018 an underwater search of the aircraft, using sonar, was announced by the Deeper Dorset group.^[18][19]

306th Strategic Wing[edit]

On 1 July 1978, the SAC 306th Strategic Wing was transferred to RAF Mildenhall from Ramstein Air Base, West Germany with a KC-135 air refuelling and a RC-135 reconnaissance mission. The 306th also functioned as the focal point for all SAC operations in Europe, and became the host unit at RAF Mildenhall. MAC cargo and passenger transport operations continued under the 435th Tactical Airlift Group.

With the arrival of the 306th SW, Mildenhall also became known as SAC's European Reconnaissance centre. For many years, various types of Boeing RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft were observed regularly arriving and departing from the Mildenhall runway. Most of these aircraft came from the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Offutt AFB, Nebraska, and had the capability to receive radar and radio signals from far behind the borders of the Communist Eastern Bloc. From Mildenhall, the RC-135s flew ELINT and COMINT missions along the borders of Poland, the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia. The twenty or so specialists on board the RC-135s during such missions listened to and recorded military radio frequencies and communications.

The next significant event in Mildenhall's history came with the arrival of Detachment 4, 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing in 1976, which controlled rotational Lockheed U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird operations from the base. It is not known when SAC first began making reconnaissance flights in Europe with these aircraft. There are indications that these fast aircraft have been operating in Europe since the end of the 1960s, with an SR-71 making a stopover in August 1970 at RAF Upper Heyford, England, before a mission over the Middle East.

These aircraft carried out strategic photo reconnaissance missions for NATO and the USAF within the framework of the SALT I Agreement of 1972. Under this agreement, the Soviet Union and the United States reached agreement on a partial freeze on the number of offensive nuclear weapons, and these flights were to check that the Soviets were adhering to the agreement.

As well as the photo missions, the 9th SRW gathered telemetry signals from Soviet missile systems. Such missions were carried out using the SR-71 and U-2/TR-1 aircraft, and Boeing RC-135s from the 55th SRW. This information was analysed, together with information originating from reconnaissance satellites, to present an intelligence picture for analysis to assemble a good picture of Soviet activities for national decision-making.

The 306th SW also played a major role in the success of Operation El Dorado Canyon, the American attack on the Libyan capital of Tripoli in 1986. In support of this 14-hour, radio-silence rendezvous mission, the unit deployed the largest number of refuelling aircraft ever flown over Europe, and the largest fleet of KC-10's ever airborne at one time. In addition, the day after the attack, 9th SW aircraft made several unmolested flights over the bombed military targets in and around Tripoli and Benghazi.

From their arrival, until the departure of the last SR-71 on 18 January 1990, the 306th Strategic Wing's SR-71 and U-2 aircraft came to symbolise RAF Mildenhall in the local public's eye.

On 18 June 1987, HQ USAFE designated the 513 TAW as the 513th Airborne Command and Control Wing (513th ACCW), with responsibility for the E-3 Sentry AWCS aircraft at Mildenhall. The 513th ACCW's mission was to provide theatre and Air Force commanders with trained aircrews and maintenance personnel and systems for airborne surveillance, warning and control of U.S. and allied military aviation assets. Nearly five years later, during the Air Force's transition to the objective wing structure, the Air Force inactivated the 513th ACCW on 31 January 1992.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, and lessening of Cold War tensions, the 'Silk Purse' mission of the 10th ACCS came to an end on 31 December 1991, and the unit was inactivated.

Post Cold War[edit]

Team Mildenhall logo

The 306th SW operated at RAF Mildenhall until 1 February 1992, when the 100th Air Refueling Wing of USAFE, assumed the 306th SW responsibilities, and became host unit at Mildenhall, along with becoming Headquarters European Tanker Task Force with its KC-135 Stratotankers.

The 100th ARW provides aerial refuelling support to Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps aircraft, as well as aircraft of allied nations. Its aircraft are also capable of transporting litter and ambulatory patients using patient support pallets during aeromedical evacuations.

In May 1993, as part of the drawdown of forces in Europe, it was announced that the majority of the USAF-operated base at RAF Alconbury was to be returned to the British Ministry of Defence. As a part of this return, the 352d Special Operations Group and its associated aircraft, the MC-130E, HC-130P/N and MH-53, transferred to RAF Mildenhall in March 1995.

On 1 July 1994, the 95th Reconnaissance Squadron was activated at Mildenhall, essentially taking over the mission of the inactivated 306th Strategic Wing.

21st century[edit]

During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the 491st Air Expeditionary Group operated from the base, with the 491st Air Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron and the 744th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, flying the Lockheed C-141 Starlifter (C-141C).^[20] Also attached to the 491 AEG was the 791st Expeditionary Aeromedical Airlift Squadron, now located at Ramstein AB, Germany.^[21] The 491 AEG had nearly 800 personnel, staging Air Force Reserve Command and Air National Guard (ANG) C-141Cs and their aircrew and aeromedical crews from RAF Mildenhall, UK, Rhein-Main and Ramstein AB, Germany, NAS Sigonella, Sicily, and NAS Rota, Spain. At one point, 18 C-141Cs were on the ground at RAF Mildenhall at the same time.

On 8 January 2015, the United States Department of Defense announced closure of RAF Mildenhall, and absorbing 700 personnel in Ramstein Air Base and Spangdahlem Air Base as part of a program to save $500 million a year across Europe.^[1] The changes are a result of the U.S. Defense Department's European Infrastructure Consolidation (EIC), a two-year-long study to downsize the number of sites and facilities being used by U.S. forces in Europe.^[22] On the same day, the UK government announced the site was one of 12 that will be sold as part of the strategy for the MOD estate, although no date for the sale was given.^[23]

CV-22 Ospreys and C-130s stationed at the airbase will be re-located to Spangdahlem Air Base, whereas the KC-135 tanker aircraft will be sent to Ramstein.^[24]

However, a change of administration in the United States, heightened security in Europe and concerns about the Middle-East have prompted a re-think on Mildenhall's closure.^[25]

See also[edit]

• List of Royal Air Force stations
• RAF Thorpe Abbotts
• Strategic Air Command in the United Kingdom

References[edit]

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.  This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document "RAF Mildenhall".

Citations[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office 1961 (republished 1983, Office of Air Force History, ISBN 0-912799-02-1).
• Ravenstein, Charles A. Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Office of Air Force History 1984. ISBN 0-912799-12-9.
• Fletcher, Harry R. (1989) Air Force Bases Volume II, Active Air Force Bases outside the United States of America on 17 September 1982. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-53-6
• Rogers, Brian (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, England: Midland Publications. ISBN 1-85780-197-0.
• USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers—1908 to present
• Strategic-Air-Command.com

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to RAF Mildenhall.

• Airport information for EGUN at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.