THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
It has been announced by the Department of Defense that 2500 personnel at RAF Mildenhall, UK, will remain at the base, in a change to plans which would have seen them move to Germany.
In light of the decision to withdraw US bases from Germany, the DoD confirmed that RAF Mildenhall would remain active to provide continued support for US Air Forces operations. Explaining the decision, Secretary of State for Defense Mark Esper said "The 2,500 airmen based in Mildenhall, United Kingdom, who are responsible for aerial refuelling and special operations, and who had been scheduled to rebase to Germany, will remain in the United Kingdom, thus ensuring the uninterrupted readiness and responsiveness of these units".
Mildenhall currently hosts a number of units, including the 100th Air Refueling Wing and the 352nd Special Operations Wing.
The base has been home to US forces since 1958, but its closure had been announced in 2015. The move to Germany was originally scheduled for 2023, before being postponed to 2027. RAF Mildenhall, and its sister base at nearby Lakenheath, will continue to host US Air Force units now for the forseeable future.
