HEATH VISIT 2018

RAF Lakenheath Spotting Visit in 2018, check out what we captured. Tuesday 11th September.

The USAF certainly know how to make some noise. Our first visit to The Suffolk base fell on the Anniversary of 9/11. The Resident F-15s were out in force from all three squadrons - Grim Reapers (Black and Gold Stripe) - Mad Hatters (Blue Stripe) - Panthers (Red Stripe). Lakenheath is home to the 48th Fighter wing also known as the Liberty wing which is made up of three squadrons. The only USAF F-15 wing in Europe. 492nd and 494th Squadron operate the F-15E variety. The other Squadron , 493rd operate the F-15 C/D variety. So if you enjoy military spotting this USAF base is for you. The Viewing area located at the end of the runway and has space for 50 - 100 cars. The car park is home to a wonderful gem of a burger van. Fantastic food and great prices. The location was ideal for arriving aircraft on the 11th. But we had a surprise visit... A local spotter informed us of some visitors. The visitors were in the form of F-15s. The first 4 arrived in formation and broke for landing. The four ship landed and consisted of 2x F-15 from the 104th Fighter wing (MA) from the Massachusetts Air National Guard. The other 2 F-15s were from the Oregon National Guard (OR ANG) in Portland. After the first visitors we were told the next 4 would arrive at 12:00pm.

So until the guests arrived the locals popped the afterburners on and entertained the crowds which had gathered. One after the other the resident F-15s rolled down the runway. The next 4 arrived spot on 12:00pm, these arrived without a flypast to break. One after the other they touched down on Suffolk soil after a flight from eastern Europe. Once again the 4 Fighters jets came from 2 different wings. Two F-15C "barnestormers" from the 104th fighter wing usually based at Westfield-barnes regional airport.Followed by two more from the 123rd Fighter Squadron based in the state of Oregon over in the US. All the ANG F-15s had been on a exercise in Europe for the last 3 months from the Netherlands to eastern nations.Overall we saw plenty of F-15s the visitors were a bonus on top of what had been a busy morning for movements.

Spotting Location - Spotters car park.

Facilities available - Burger Van in car park and short drive to Brandon.

Summary - The Suffolk base is the ideal location for a days spotting if you love noisy fast jets. Lakenheath is homed to the only US F-15s in Europe. The viewing area is a great location for photography and chatting about aviation.Servicemen on the base are very friendly with spotters waving from cars as they drive by you. Great place to visit if you enjoy US Aviation or just want to see some Fighter Jet action. All of the photos were taken though the fence.

Overall Spotting Score - 10/10 (Based on facilities and conditions for spotters)

Written by Kian: Miles to go - Aviation Blogging