RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk, England
I took this photo from about a quarter of a mile away
I'ts a F-15E Strike Eagle from the 492nd Fighter Squadron based at Lakenheath
Royal Air Force Lakenheath is in the English county of Suffolk, about 70 miles north-east of London and is a huge complex that is leased to the US military. Suffolk is the perfect place for an airbase as it (and the whole of East Anglia) is the flattest part of England. To give you an idea the 'East Anglian Mountaineering Club' is an excuse to meet in the pub for a drinking session. There is hardly a hill in East Anglia, let alone a mountain!
Lakenheath is the home of the US air force's 48th Fighter Wing also designated the Statue of Liberty Wing which makes it, uniquely, the only Wing to have both a name and a number. There are around 5,700 military personnel plus 2,000 US and British civilians on the base.
Although I am not usually a militaristic kind of person I found it strangely stirring to be there. The thought that struck me at the time, and the reason I am posting this, is that everything seemed to be so 'open' and non-secretive. I took the above photo from the well-sign-posted visitor's car park and there were no restrictions. Also, all of the factual information in this post comes from the internet. In fact from the US Air Force's own Lakenheath web-site! I believe that is the kind of freedom they represent. Could you imagine any other country being so transparent about it's military?
This photo of a trio of F-15E’s was downloaded from the official website. It was taken last month and if you look closely, just below the nearest aircraft, there is a small circle on the ground. That’s Stonehenge, one of the world’s most mysterious Neolithic structures. Stonehenge is not far from Lakenheath - if you are travelling by jet-fighter.
If there are no posts from me in the next few weeks, it means the military police have come to take me away and I was wrong about all that 'non-secretive' stuff.
posted by Bazza at 6:11 pm
127 Comments:
Maybe the base is so open because it's the decoy airbase--the real airbase is squirreled away in a top-secret location. I have been to Stonehenge and remember how flat that part of England was. I have never heard it called East Anglia (like East India). Is that a folk nickname or is it legit?
Hello Sir.
Excellent photos and description.
I wanted to study flying,but students with mathematics &Physics are only allowed to learn .So I gave up my desire.
As I mentioned before: my Dad was an RAF pilot. At one time we lived in Hunstanton. I guess there must be an RAF base somewhere around there as well.
It is interesting how you juxtaposed Stonehenge with such modern technology.
In the states, openly photographing public buildings, let alone military installations, might well result in an uncomfortable interview with the local constable. I don’t think they are fastening electrodes to anyone’s nether regions, but still not an advisable activity.
gem: Until about a thousand years ago it was a separate Kingdom. It comprises the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and part of Essex. Nowadays it's used as a geographical reference, not political so it is only vaguely definable as it has no clear boundaries. Stonehenge is in Wiltshire in the west of England and when I said 'it's not far - in a jet fighter' I wasn't kidding. It's about 175 miles away, a bit far for a regular commute!
deepak: Yes, and I reckon you would need A1 health too. I have had a couple of flying lessons but it's too expensive for a hobby. But I did manage to slip the 'surly bonds of Earth'. Regrettably, I did not 'touch the face of God' because as I did not believe in him he turned his face away!
rob: Yes I think there is, or was, a base there. I was actually more interested in Stonehenge than Lakenheath. I had written and saved that post about two weeks ago and it's just a coincidence that I posted it right after High Flight.
slaghammer: I guess that these days they are a tad touchy about that kind of thing. There was a case a few years ago when a party of nerdy British plane-spotters were arrested in Greece for 'spying'. They were completely innocent but naive and it took about a year of beaurocracy to sort it out.
Well, I could say a lot, but suffice to say that U.S. transparency of some of its military toys is very precisely orchestrated.
Nice photos!
serenity: I sat on this post for a while before publishing because I was having a mental tug-of-war with myself. As you can see I did decide to publish because it's genuinely well-intentioned and because of the Stonehenge link. As Rob noticed, it's a strange juxtaposition, but that's what appealed to me.
Hi Bazza,
My geography knowledge of England is rather poor, and focused on the south/west. However, I get the feeling the places you're mentioning are rather wide afield, and can't all be close to your home - unless you travel a lot?
Regards
Stephen
stephen: Well spotted, mate! I travel all around the south-east of England doing business valuations in the catering trade. That means someone is paying me to travel to all these places and, among other things, take photos of various businesses, so I am out and about with my camera. However, I am starting a new job in October which means I will be mainly office-based so I will have to work out another way to do it.
Bazza....The first photo is lovely. I haven't traveled much. Your posts are always intelligent, educational, witty. They make me feel as though I'm on a mini vacation in England. Thank you!
Please keep posting even when you start your new position.....lest we think they've carted you away.
Lo Bazza! Great 'Time' juxtaposition, intriquing, even demanding! I do like the pics too, something about a billon dollar, billion part, hunk of incredibly heavy metal, METAL, lounging around in the sky off of the ground, and moving, with a little man inside looking all around, IMPOSSIBLE! Yet, true! Talk about a leap of faith!
Serenity is right, orchestrated freedom and exposure sometimes, other times, they are waiting for you at the gates.
And so Mimi, you Posts are wonderful and so the pics, and you are like an amazing vacation, without the hassles to boot!
Hope your job change is smooth and right for you. These kind of things can be temporarily unsettling. Good luck with it!
mimi: Thanks,Mimi. I will keep posting the 'guide to England' stuff by downloading other peoples pictures but, at least initially, I will only write about places I have actually been to. Thanks for your concern but they haven't come for me yet!
jim: Thanks for that Jim. I am looking forward to starting the new job. I have been self-employed since I was 19 and I have got to get used to being a part of an organization again.
Dad, I am sure as Gem says this is a decoy airbase - the real one is contained somewhere within the Secret Nuclear Bunker. Love, Ruthie xxx
Ruthie, if that's a decoy base the real one would be about the size of Manchester!
Prometheus, attracted to things military and specially aviation, feels like adding that everything military isn't classified top secret. There are training bases, general ops bases that are quite open. This one seems similar given that its an F15 Eagle squadron. Assuredly, the B2/Nighthawk squadrons won't be so photographer-friendly, much lesser any JSF ones.
Ergo, Prometheus hopes Bazza doesn't lose sleep over Feds knocking at his door waving the PATRIOT or other acts at him.
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Great to see this website. My family and I flew out of Lakenheath in 1977 back to the USA. I loved it there.
It's brilliant job.
Thanks for creating this interesting blog!
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