RAF Mildenhall

Template:Airport frame Template:Airport title Template:Airport image Template:Airport infobox Template:Runway title Template:Runway Template:Airport end frame RAF Mildenhall (IATA: MHZ, ICAO: EGUN) is a Royal Air Force station located at Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. It currently the home of the United States Air Force 100th Air Refueling Wing.

RAF Mildenhall and its sister base RAF Lakenheath are the largest United States Air Force bases in the United Kingdom.

100th Air Refueling Wing

The host unit at Mildenhall is the 100th Refueling Wing which deploys aircraft for and manages the European Tanker Task Force, a rotational force which provides air refueling to US and NATO aircraft in the European Theater. It is the only permanent U.S. air refueling wing in the European theater, activated at Mildenhall on 1 February 1992. The wing provides the critical air refueling "bridge" that allows the Expeditionary Air Force to deploy around the globe on a moment's notice.

Other major units headquarterd at Mildenhall are:

• 501st Combat Support Wing
• 352nd Special Operations Group
• 95th Reconnaissance Squadron
• 488th Intelligence Squadron
• 727th Air Mobility Squadron
• Sixteenth Air Force

In addition, RAF Mildenhall provides Command and Control of the following Geographically Separate Units (GSU):

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

100th Air Refueling Wing

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Tail of a 100ARW Boeing KC-135A-BN Stratotanker, Serial 58-0100, displaying the crest of RAF Mildenhall and the historic "SquareD" badge as used by the unit during the second world war

The 100th Air Refueling Wing is USAFE’s only KC-135 air refueling wing comprised of 15 permanently assigned aircraft, and is responsible for U.S. air refueling operations conducted throughout the European theater. The unit supports some 16,000 personnel, including Third Air Force, four geographically separated units, and 15 associated units.

On 1 June 1942, the Army Air Forces activated the 100th Bombardment Group (Heavy) (100 BG(H)) as an unmanned paper unit assigned to III Bomber Command. The group remained unmanned until 27 October 1942, when a small number of men transferred from the 29th Bombardment Group to Gowen Field, ID, to serve as the group’s initial cadre.

The 100 BG flew its last combat mission of World War II on 20 April 1945. The following month the unit’s aircrews dropped food to the people of Holland, and in June transported French Allied former prisoners of war from Austria to France. In December 1945, the group returned to the U.S., where it inactivated at Camp Kilmer, NJ, on 21 December 1945.

On 29 May 1947, Headquarters Army Air Force reactivated the 100 BG at Miami Army Air Field. From the time of its activation the group trained and operated as a reserve unit until it was again inactivated on 27 June 1949. The Air Force activated the 100th as a medium bombardment wing on 1 January 1956, at Portsmouth Air Force Base, NH, and assigned again to Eighth Air Force. For the next ten years the wing performed global strategic bombardment training, and global air refueling.

Following a brief nonoperational period (April-June 1966), the Air Force redesignated the wing as the 100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, and moved it without personnel or equipment to Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ on 25 June 1966. In September 1976, the Air Force redesignated the wing as the 100th Air Refueling Wing, and relocated it to Beale AFB. While at Beale, the 100 ARW assumed responsibility for providing worldwide air refueling support to the 9 SRW with its KC-135Qs from 30 September 1976 until its inactivation on 15 March 1983.

On 1 February 1992, over 46 years after departing England at the end of World War II, the Air Force re-activated the 100 ARW and stationed it at RAF Mildenhall, United Kingdom. From the time of its reactivation, the 100 ARW has served as the United States Air Forces Europe’s lone air refueling wing.

352d Special Operations Group

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The 352 SOG is the Air Force component for Special Operations Command Europe, a sub-unified command of the US European Command. The 352 SOG has three flying squadrons, a maintenance squadron, an operations support squadron and a special tactics squadron.

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

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

488th Intelligence Squadron

The 488th Intelligence Squadron is headquartered at Royal Air Force Mildenhall, United Kingdom, approximately 60 miles north of London. Also administratively assigned to the 488th Intelligence Squadron is Operating Location Souda Bay, Greece. The present 488th Intelligence Squadron traces its lineage back to the 6954th Security Squadron which was originally designated Detachment 1 of the 6985th Security Squadron at Royal Air Force Upper Heyford, England, in June 1967. The unit moved to Royal Air Force Mildenhall, England, in August 1970. In 1974, Detachment 1 of the 6985th Security Squadron was redesignated as the 6954th Security Squadron.

In August 1979, the 6954th Security Squadron was redesignated as the 6954th Electronic Security Squadron to coincide with the redesignation of United States Air Force Security Service as Electronic Security Command. In November 1990, with the deactivation of the 6916th Electronic Security Squadron, Hellenikon Air Base, Greece, the squadron assumed responsibility for all Electronic Security Command RC-135 support to the United States European Command. From October 1990 to March 1991, the squadron conducted operations from OL-RH 6988th Electronic Security Squadron, Hellenikon Air Base, Greece.

In October 1991, the 6988th Electronic Security Squadron was resubordinated to the Air Force Intelligence Command.

On 1 October 1993, the 6988th Electronic Security Squadron was redesignated the 488th Intelligence Squadron as part of the ongoing restructuring of Air Force Intelligence and the Air Force Intelligence Command as a field operating agency. The 488th Intelligence Squadron is under the administrative control of this field operating agency, which was designated Air Intelligence Agency on 1 October 1993.

On 1 February 2001, the Air Intelligence Agency was re-aligned under Eighth Air Force at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana. This re-alignment placed Air Intelligence Agency under Air Combat Command. In peace and war, the 488th Intelligence Squadron has earned nine Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards.

On 1 October 2002, the 488th was re-aligned from the 67th Information Operations Wing to the 55th Wing. The re-alignment placed all RC-135 assets under one wing, reinforcing the nose to tail importance of this weapons system.

95th Reconnaissance Squadron

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The 95th Reconnaissance Squadron conducts RC-135 Rivet Joint flight operations in the European and Mediterranean theaters of operations as tasked by National Command Authorities and European Command.

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 EC-135, OC-135, and E-4 missions when theater deployed.

The 95th Reconnaissance Squadron was originally organized as the 95th Aero Squadron on 20 August 1917 at Kelly Field, TX. Deployed to various locations in France during World War I, the squadron saw combat as a pursuit unit with the French Sixth Army, the French Eighth Army, and First Army, AEF, from March to November 1918. Operating the Nieuport 28 (1918); Spad XIII (1918), the squadron had been assigned to the 3rd Aviation Instruction Center (c. 16 November 1917); to the 1st Pursuit Organization and Training Center (c. 19 February 1918); and to the 1st Pursuit Group (5 May-24 Dec 1918). Upon its return to the United States, the squadron was demobilized on 18 March 1919 at Garden City, NY.

Reorganized on 12 August 1919 at Selfridge, MI, under the 1st Pursuit Group, the squadron was redesignated as the 95th Squadron (Pursuit) on 14 March 1921; as the 95th Pursuit Squadron on 30 September 1922; the 95th Pursuit Squadron, Air Service, on 25 January 1923; the 95th Pursuit Squadron, Air Corps, on 8 August 1926. Reassigned to the Air Corps Training Center, c. 7 Jun 1927, it inactivated on 31 July 1927 at March Field, CA. In addition to the SE-5 (1919-1922), the Spad XIII (1919, 1921-1922), and the MB-3A (1922-1925), aircraft flown by the 95th included the Fokker D-VII, and the DH-4 during the period of 1919-1925; the PW-8 (1924-1926); and the P-1 (1925-1927).

Redesignated 95th Pursuit Squadron, it reactivated, on 1 June 1928 at Rockwell Field, California, and was possibly attached to the 7th Bombardment Group. It was reassigned to the 17th Pursuit (later, 17th Attack; 17th Bombardment) Group, on 31 May 1929 (but attached to 7th Bombardment Group, from May 1929-October 1931).

The squadron was redesignated as the 95th Attack Squadron on 1 March 1935; the 95th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 17 October 1939; and the 95th Bombardment Squadron, Medium, on 9 October 1944. During World War II, the squadron coducted antisubmarine patrols in 1941 and '42. Operating from locations in Algeria, Tunisia, Sardinia, Corsica, France and Austria, the 95th saw combat in the Mediterranean Theater and the European Theatre, from December 1942-May 1945. It inactivated on 26 November 1945 at Camp Myles Standish, MA. Aircraft flown by the squadron during that period included the PW-9 (1928-1929); P-12 (1929-1934, 1935-1936); P-26 Peashooter (1934-1935); A-17A (1936-1939); B-18 Bolo (1939-1940); B-23 Dragon (1940-1941); B-25 Mitchell (1941-1942); and the B-26 Marauder (1942-1945).

Redesignated as the 95th Bombardment Squadron, Light, Night Intruder, on 8 May 1952, the 95th reactivated on 10 May 1952 at Pusan-East AB, South Korea. The squadron was flying the B-26s, and saw combat in Korea May 1952 to July 1953. Relocating to Hulburt Field, FL, the unit converted to the B-66 in 1956. It inactivated on 25 June 1958.

Redesignated as the 95th Reconnaissance Squadron on 20 January 1982, the squadron activated on 1 October 1982 at RAF Alconbury, England. Assigned to the 17th Reconnaissance Wing, the squadron operated the U2/TR-1 aircraft. The squadron provided reconnaissance in support of combat operations in Southwest Asia, in January 1991. The 95th RS was reassigned to the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing (later, 9th Wing; 9th Reconnaissance Wing) on 30 June 1991 before inactivating on 15 September 1993.

The 95 RS reactivated on 1 July 1994 at RAF Mildenhall, England, assigned to the 55th Operations Group.

727th Air Mobility Squadron

The 727th Air Mobility Squadron is a unit of the 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, like 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 March 15, 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.

History

RAF Mildenhall opened on October 16 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 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 airshow 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 F.J. Linnell, 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 T. 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 materialized during the Munich Crisis. Between 26 September 1938 and 4 October 1939, the base completed its installation of its defense systems. After a brief reprieve from war, the base prepared for war, bringing station defenses 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.

Throughout World War II, Mildenhall remained very active. In addition to its own airfield, the base held responsibility for satellite airfields at Newmarket, Tuddenham, and Lakenheath. During the course of the war, the base witnessed the transition from the two-engine Wellington, to the Short Stirling, and finally to the four-engine Avro Lancaster. 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 many offensives against Germany. While carrying out its operational duties, the base withstood several attacks by the German Luftwaffe, but was never put out of commission (typically, the base’s downtime after an attack lasted until personnel could fill in the damage to the runways).

By the end of the war, aircraft from RAF Mildenhall and its satellite airfields dropped over 23,000 tons of explosives, laid 2,000 mines in enemy waters, and flew over 8,000 sorties. Unfortunately, the base also saw the loss of over 200 Wellington, Stirling, and Lancaster aircraft, and more significantly, the loss of over 2,000 aircrew members. Some of those who paid the ultimate price for peace, including Pilot Officer Rawdon Hume Middleton, an Australian who was posthumously awarded Britain’s highest military honor, the Victoria Cross, are buried at St. Johns Church cemetery in Beck Row

Immediately after the war, Mildenhall participated in humanitarian missions, flying home repatriated prisoners of war, and dropping relief supplies to the Dutch people stranded by the flooding caused by the retreating German Army. 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.

On 12 July 1950, the 93d Bomb Group arrived at RAF Mildenhall and began operations. Shortly afterwards, on 7 February 1951, the 509th Bomb Wing arrived at Mildenhall, replacing the 93d Bomb Group. The arrival of the 509th touched off a sequence of transitions, with the 2d Bomb Wing replacing the 509th in May 1951, followed by the 22d Bomb Wing replacement of the 2d Bomb Wing later that same year. On 1 October 1951, Strategic Air Command took control of the station and bomb wings rotated in and out of Mildenhall on temporary duty assignments.

Prior to Strategic Air Command’s role at RAF Mildenhall, Headquarters United States Air Forces in Europe (HQ USAFE) established Third Air Force at South Ruislip Air Station. Simultaneously, Strategic Air Command established the 7th Air Division Headquarters at 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 Mildenhall. The presence of American bombers lent credence to Sir Winston Churchill’s statement that their presence in England was the primary deterrent keeping the Soviets from overrunning Europe.

RB-47H_Recon_Route

From 1954 through 1958 US politics influenced USAF activities within the United Kingdom, fostering a period of force reduction and modernization. Gradually, the number of Air Force personnel decreased. A single RB-47H parked alone on the ramp, a secure and unobserved location from which to recon the Baltic Sea to Leningrad.

SAC departed RAF Mildenhall in late 1958 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. In late 1959, RAF Mildenhall became the home for the Military Air Transports Service (later Military Airlift Command) Air Passenger Terminal for the United Kingdom, with the 7513th Air Base Group providing service to the terminal.

In late 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 7120 ACCS converted from C-118s to EC-135s. On 8 June 1966, the base received yet another unit, the 513th Troop Carrier Wing (513 TCW), which relocated from Evreaux-Fauville Air Base, France. With its activation on Mildenhall, the 513 TCW assumed operational control of two Military Airlift Command rotational C-130 squadrons and the 7120 ACCS. Two years after its arrival, the 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 10 ACCS replacing the 7120 ACCS, and assuming its mission. However, in June of 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.

The next significant event in Mildenhall’s history came with the arrival of Detachment 4, 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, which controlled rotational SR-71 and U-2R aircraft from the base. Four years after they began rotational duty at Mildenhall, the base became a permanent station for the SR-71 in January 1983. From its arrival until the departure of the last SR-71 on 18 January 1990, the aircraft came to symbolize RAF Mildenhall in the local public's eye.

On 18 June 1987, HQ USAFE redesignated the 513 TAW as the 513th Airborne Command and Control Wing (513 ACCW). Nearly five years later, during the Air Force’s transition to the objective wing structure, the Air Force inactivated the 513 ACCW on 31 January 1992, and activated the 100th Air Refueling Wing in its place, and to serve as the Headquarters European Tanker Task Force. The activation of the 100 ARW at RAF Mildenhall saw the return of the unit to the country in which it built its war fighting heritage and legacy.

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

Trivia

• Winston Churchill stayed at the lodging there. The room was named after him.
• Prior to the the 9/11 bombings when the base was open to the public, RAF Mildenhall's Galaxy Club was considered to be one of Britain's top night clubs.

See also

• List of RAF stations
• United States Air Forces in Europe
• United States Air Force in the United Kingdom

External links

• Official site
• MH-53J/M PAVE LOW (The Pave Web) -Unofficial Site
• Template:WAD