Scientists: US modernizing storage for nuclear bombs at UK’s Lakenheath base

The United States is upgrading underground storage facilities at Lakenheath Air Base in England to accommodate nuclear bombs, according to a report by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).

According to foreign media quoting the report, the WS3-type storage units are being modernized, despite the fact that US nuclear weapons were removed from Lakenheath in 2008, per Caliber.Az.

Currently, only the US Air Force’s F-15E and F-35A fighter jets — both capable of carrying nuclear bombs — are stationed at the base.

“As of February 2025, there is no known public indication that nuclear weapons have been deployed at the UK's Lakenheath airbase. We believe that the return of the nuclear mission (to the airbase) is intended primarily as a contingency, rather than to deploy weapons now,” the report states.

The FAS report highlights that as early as fiscal year 2023, Washington allocated funds for modernizing "special weapons" storage at Lakenheath. The term "special weapons," the report notes, is commonly used by the US government when referring to nuclear arms.

Currently, approximately 100 US tactical nuclear bombs are stored at six NATO airbases in Europe.

According to FAS estimates 15 nuclear bombs each are stored at Büchel (Germany), Kleine-Brogel (Belgium), Volkel (Netherlands), and Ghedi (Italy); 20 bombs each are housed at Aviano (Italy) and Incirlik (Türkiye).

These weapons can be deployed using F-35A, F-15E, F-16, and Tornado fighter-bombers, reinforcing NATO’s nuclear deterrence strategy.

By Tamilla Hasanova