RAF MILDENHALL, England -- Though many might assume the security of the base rests solely with the defenders of the 100th Security Forces Squadron, every member of the 100th Air Refueling Wing and its neighbors can contribute to safeguarding RAF Mildenhall's mission, Airmen and families.
At every Air Force installation the Air Force Office of Special Investigations manages the Eagle Eyes program, which provides a 24-hour point of contact for reporting suspicious activity.
"The Eagle Eyes program is our best first line of defense locally at RAF Mildenhall, RAF Lakenheath and RAF Feltwell," said Maj. Jeffrey Adams, 100th SFS commander. "It's a chance for all of us to do our part in taking a pro-active approach to security and antiterrorism efforts in our local community.
"This program is not only key to successful integration of all personnel, but it also gives us and AFOSI a statistical database to be able to collate information and determine if there are any trends in the local area and other areas here in the U.K., (U.S. Air Forces in Europe) and (European Command)," said Adams.
Suspicious activities reported through the Eagle Eyes program are immediately shared with local law enforcement agencies, counterterrorism personnel and military commanders for rapid assessment and investigation.
To ensure the safety of RAF Mildenhall and the local community, everyone should be on the lookout for the following:
Surveillance: Someone recording or monitoring activities. Examples are people seen using cameras (either still or video), taking notes, drawing diagrams, annotating on maps, or using binoculars or other vision-enhancing devices.
However, in England there is the unique situation of avid aviation enthusiasts who take photos around RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath. Many are part of the Spotter Watch program which is run by the bases for tailspotters who sit outside the perimeter in designated sites and photograph aircraft. Members report suspicious activity to authorities, helping improve base security. They also inform 100th SFS and 48th Security Forces Squadron of anyone taking photos or acting suspiciously who is not known to them.
Elicitation: People or organizations attempting to gain information about military operations, capabilities or people. Elicitation attempts may be made through social media, e-mail, telephone or in person. Examples could include being approached at a gas station and asked about what's happening at the base, how many personnel work in various units, number of aircraft or deployment timelines and procedures.
Tests of security: Any attempts to measure reaction times to security breaches or attempts to penetrate physical security barriers or procedures in order to assess strengths and weaknesses. Examples include a person shaking the base fence and seeing how long it takes for security forces to respond or a driver approaching the main gate without an ID and claiming to be lost in order to learn gate entrance procedures.
Acquiring supplies: Purchasing or stealing explosives, weapons or ammunition. This also includes acquiring military uniforms, decals, flight manuals, passes or badges (or the equipment to manufacture such items) or any other controlled items.
Anyone suspicious/vehicles out of place: People or vehicles that don't seem to belong around the workplace, neighborhood, business establishment or anywhere else. This category is hard to define, but the main point is that people know what does and doesn't look right in their neighborhoods, office spaces and commutes.
Remember when reporting suspicious individuals, it's important to provide as much information as possible. This includes, but is not limited to, gender, clothing type and color, approximate height, and distinguishing marks or tattoos.
When reporting suspicious vehicles, be sure to include color, make, model and most importantly a license plate number (even a partial plate number). All of these details can help authorities and the Eagle Eyes program.
Dry run: Putting people into position and moving them around according to their plan without actually committing the terrorist act. An element of this activity could also include mapping out routes and determining the timing of traffic lights and flow. Take note of people moving around from place to place without any apparent purpose and doing it, perhaps, many times.
An example of a dry run is the Sept. 11 hijackers, who are now known to have actually flown on those exact flights several times before Sept. 11. Their purpose was to practice getting their people into position, working out arrival times, parking, ticketing, going through security, boarding, etc. By taking note of everything around them, in one sense they were conducting surveillance and testing security, but they were also doing a dry run of the actual activity.
Deploying assets: People and supplies getting into position in order to commit the terrorist act. This is a person's last chance to alert authorities before the terrorist act occurs. Look for people loading up vehicles with weaponry/explosives, etc., and/or parking that vehicle somewhere; people in military uniforms (who don't look right) approaching an installation or getting into a vehicle; or people who seem out of place standing by at a certain location as if waiting for something to happen.
One example of this is the attack on the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia. When the explosives-laden truck pulled up to the fence line (which was the "deploying assets" step) and the driver jumped out and ran away, that was seen by a spotter on the roof of the dormitory, who recognized this as suspicious activity. He then sprinted down stairs and began pounding on doors, rousting people out of bed and getting them out of the building. Because of that, he saved many, many lives, and it's all because he recognized the "deploying assets" element.
"The Eagle Eyes program is a robust program that relies on participation from the entire community, whether from US or UK personnel, on or off base," said Special Agent Sarah Hedrick, AFOSI Detachment 512 director of operations from Owasso, Oklahoma. "The primary focus of the program is to identify potential terrorist activities and alert authorities. Examples of these activities are surveillance of USAF assets, tests of security, or even just people acting suspiciously.
"Many times these are the very same activities everyday criminals conduct. If you see something that you think fits in with the Eagle Eyes program, don't hesitate to reach out to the 100th SFS Base Defense Operations Center at commercial at 01638 542667 or the local authorities off base by dialing 999. Be sure to take note of information that will help authorities identify the suspicious persons, such as vehicle license plates and physical descriptions. The local Eagle Eyes program is a success because of the fantastic community support throughout the area working together to keep each other safe," Hedrick said.
To learn more about the Eagle Eyes program watch the video here.
(Information provided by 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs, Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota)