Lakenheath received the latest nuclear- capable fighter – the F-35A – in December 2021 and a total of 24 F-35As are expected to be based there. By the time of their removal in 2008, the site had 33 underground storage vaults and stored around 110 B61 gravity bombs that could be dropped from F-15E warplanes based there. RAF Lakenheath hosted US nuclear weapons for more than five decades, first arriving in September 1954. There are 33 vaults at the base.Ĭredit: Image created by Hans Kristiansen / FAS with original picture from USAF A return to the past He added: “It is unclear if nuclear weapons have been returned to the base yet or NATO is upgrading the base to be capable of receiving nuclear weapons in the future if necessary.” A ceremony at RAF Lakenheath held inside an aircraft shelter with an (empty) underground nuclear weapons vault. “The addition of the United Kingdom to the list of nuclear storage locations being upgraded in Europe signals a change in the nuclear status of RAF Lakenheath,” wrote Kristensen. Kristensen believes the base in question is RAF Lakenheath, located just 100 km from London. The UK’s inclusion in the budget was first spotted by Hans Kristensen, the director of the nuclear information project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). It comes amid reports that the US Department of Defense has added the UK to a list of NATO nuclear weapons storage locations in Europe being upgraded under a multi-million dollar infrastructure programme. The possible return of US nuclear weapons to RAF Lakenheath after 14 years has been condemned by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
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