On November 22, 2024, a National Police Air Service helicopter operating near RAF Lakenheath filed a Mandatory Occurrence Report after reporting emergency evasive action — the crew described being “pursued by a large drone” at close proximity, with approximately 100 feet of separation. The UK Airprox Board concluded the crew had misidentified a Lakenheath-based F-15. The full 30-minute FLIR video remains withheld by the Ministry of Defence.
What Witnesses Described
- Locals, plane-spotters, military personnel and police all described fast-moving, highly luminous objects with unusual flight characteristics and endurance
- Drone experts consulted by Liberation Times said the characteristics do not match off-the-shelf drone systems
- The NPAS crew reported the object “pursued” their helicopter — a behaviour inconsistent with an F-15 on a normal flight path
- Initial FOI responses and CAA statements appeared contradictory about whether a drone was actually reported
The Official Conclusion vs The Evidence
When the UKAB report was released in June 2025, it concluded the NPAS crew had misidentified a Lakenheath-based F-15. But the investigation raised unresolved questions: the TCAS returns, the lighting characteristics of the object, and the reported 100-foot separation do not align with a standard F-15 flight path. The investigation was conducted primarily by the USAF — whose aircraft would have been the subject of scrutiny. No independent drone or UAV expertise was documented in the investigation.
The full 30-minute infrared video from the NPAS helicopter’s FLIR system remains withheld by the MoD and MoD Police. A still from the video — showing a small unidentified object on infrared — is publicly available. The full footage that would resolve the dispute is not.
Context: Lakenheath Has a History
RAF Lakenheath is a US Air Force base in Suffolk, England — one of the most significant USAF installations in Europe, and a NATO nuclear-capable site. In 1956, the Lakenheath-Bentwaters incident involved multiple USAF jets scrambled against radar-confirmed UAP, with one aircraft reportedly destroyed in a close encounter. The incident was documented in Project Blue Book and remains one of the most credible cold-war era UAP cases on record.
Whatever approached the NPAS helicopter in November 2024 was operating in the airspace of a nuclear-capable NATO base. The MoD has chosen not to share the full footage.
Source: Liberation Times, Michael Morgan — November 26, 2025. UKAB Report, June 2025.