RAF Mildenhall in lockdown after ‘car forces entry past checkpoint’

Police have responded to a “significant incident” where shots were fired at an air base that was the subject of a terror attack plot last year. RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk went into ‘lockdown’ after a car rammed the gates and forced its way through a checkpoint at the 1,162-acre US Air Force facility. US security personnel opened fire and the 44-year-old driver was taken into custody, before being handed to Suffolk Constabulary for a civilian investigation. He sustained only cuts and bruises and no-one else was injured. Suffolk Constabulary said: “Police are continuing to deal with an ongoing incident at RAF Mildenhall. It is considered that there is no wider threat to the public or occupants on the base. One man has been arrested and police are not looking for anyone else on the site.” The lockdown measures were put in place at 1pm on Monday (December 18) after a reported argument broke out at the base’s gates. The lockdown was lifted shortly after 2.30pm. A National Police Air Service helicopter was also called to the base. The force tweeted that its officers were still at the base, currently home to the 100th Air Refueling Wing. RAF Mildenhall has previously been a potential target for a terror attack. In May 2016, Daesh extremist Junead Khan was given a life sentence for planning a strike against American military personnel in Britain. He had been communicating with Daesh fighter Junaid Hussain, a British hacker later killed by a US drone strike, who incited him to attack military bases. In online chats, the men cited the 2013 murder of Lee Rigby as inspiration for their planned atrocity. Khan, of Luton, used his job as a delivery driver to scout bases including Mildenhall and nearby RAF Lakenheath. The trial of the “committed” Daesh supporter heard he plotted to fake a car accident before attacking personnel with a knife. He was jailed for a minimum of 12 years after being convicted of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts.