Use the resources provided to become familiar with the housing options and support services available to you. Drive 37 min. [11] The first two radomes, designed to protect satellite receiver and transmission dishes (colloquially known as 'golf balls' and now synonymous with the station) were installed in 1974, at which point around 800 personnel were believed to work there. The Menwith Hill . He has sought clarification on a variety of issues, such as how many U.S. personnel are stationed at the site, whether it is involved in conducting drone strikes, and whether members of a British parliamentary oversight committee have been given full access to review its operations. How many covert wars, miscarriages of justice, and dystopian technologies would remain hidden if our reporters werent on the beat? MENWITH HILL is ostensibly an RAF base. In addition, the targets of the surveillance have drastically changed, as have the purposes for which the eavesdropping is carried out. Jemima Stratford QC, a leading British human rights lawyer, told The Intercept that there were serious questions to be asked and serious arguments to be made about the legality of the lethal operations aided from Menwith Hill. The site was then one of the earliest to receive sophisticated early IBM computers, with which NSA automated the labour-intensive watch-list scrutiny of intercepted but unenciphered telex messages. [14] At the time, eight radomes were now present at Menwith Hill, connecting it with other sites in the NSA's satellite communications network and alleged to allow the surveillance of communications in foreign countries. There are some 2,200 personnel at Menwith Hill, the majority of whom are Americans. [36] Duncan Campbell presented a report commissioned by STOA concerning the ECHELON system, at a "hearing of the Committee on Citizens Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs on the subject the European Union and data protection" which prompted the European Union to set up the Temporary Committee on the ECHELON Interception System. At the same time, the garrison hosted here is the 451-st Intelligence Squadron. C-3566-02 . Targeted Killing, Elegant Chaos: collect it all, exploit it all, Elegant Chaos: collect it all, exploit it all (plus notes), UK special forces Reaper drone (Jan-Feb-2012), Afghanistan 30 enemy killed (Jan-Feb 2012), Project Sandstorm wifi geolocation (Jan 2011), Yemen backhaul comms collected (Jan 2011), New ops building at Menwith completed, fit up begins, New technique geolocates targets active at Yemeni cafes, Work is progressing on Menwith Hill Stations new operations building, Ghosthunter and the geolocating of internet cafes, Traffic series: is your collection surveyed or sustained, APPARITION becomes a reality new corporate VSAT geolocation capability sees its first deployment, Menwith continues successful counterterrorism survey along Af-Pak border, SIGINT target package leads to USMC capture of al Qaeda weapons procurer, Menwith initiatives maximizing our access, GSM tower mapping made easier and more accurate with new tool, New tool combines multi agency databases for complete target snapshot. Use the resources provided to become familiar with the housing options and support services available to you. [7] The site was considered by the US as suitable for gathering signals intelligence from the northern parts of Western Europe and Eastern Europe, specifically the Soviet Union and its associated Warsaw Pact countries. [25], The 451st Intelligence Squadron, was inactivated on 24 June 2015. What is clear, however, is that the base has targeted countries such as Yemen, Pakistan, and Somalia as part of location-tracking programs like GHOSTHUNTER and GHOSTWOLF which were created to help pinpoint individuals so they could be captured or killed suggesting it has played a part in drone strikes in these countries. Most of the worlds international phone calls, internet traffic, emails, and other communications are sent over a network of undersea cables that connect countries like giant arteries. Though small in size, the Army/Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) exchange has a fair selection of goods, ranging from clothing to audio visual equipment. Instead of using it for a local base, the land was given to the American through a leasing contract. S-1702-02/03/04* School Age Program Assistant: RAF MENWITH HILL POSITIONS ONLY Must be over 18 and be able to read, write and speak English fluently and must meet qualification standards. Over the last years, the hate towards the Americans reached new limits, as many demonstrators stormed the fence around the military bases. Consequently, Menwith Hill became a vital asset in the U.S. governments counterterrorism campaign after the 9/11 attacks. [35], In 1988, investigative journalist Duncan Campbell revealed, in an article entitled "Somebody's listening" and published in New Statesman, the existence of the ECHELON surveillance program, an extension of the UKUSA Agreement on global signals intelligence Sigint. In OCONUS, if you choose to use realtor services, discuss fees up front, as some realtors charge a finder's fee and government reimbursement is rarely authorized. There is always a good selection of rental homes in local towns and villages. The NSAs British Base at the Heart of U.S. Among operations buildings in which analysts listen in on monitored conversations, there is a bowling alley, a small pool hall, a bar, a fast food restaurant, and a general store. [9] Duncan Campbell presented a report commissioned by STOA concerning the ECHELON system, at a "hearing of the Committee on Citizens Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs on the subject the European Union and data protection" which prompted the European Union to set up the Temporary Committee on the ECHELON Interception System. Spy base 'golf ball' radar shelters approved, Spy base plans for extra radar antenna shelters, Watch the moment train travels across miniature version of Knaresborough Viaduct, York and Chester council officers to meet to discuss Blue Badge access, Plans to reopen Victorian quarry in Yorkshire mired by concerns over lorries, Malton crew called to fire in garden in early hours, Yorkshire coast route from Robin Hoods Bay to Whitby named one of the best coastal walks in the UK by experts, Vehicle fire on major road through North Yorkshire - road reopens, AI chatbots 'may soon be more intelligent than us', Russia troop deaths hit 20,000 in five months - US, France May Day protests leave dozens of police injured, 'My wife and six children joined Kenya starvation cult', On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. The base is in an area of outstanding natural beauty (but officially left out in the early 1990s despite some of us trying to include it! This RAF Menwith Hill directory features the critical info youll need to navigate through the many facilities and recreational opportunities available on base. In a single 12-hour period in May 2011, for instance, its surveillance systems logged more than 335 million metadata records, which reveal information such as the sender and recipient of an email, or the phone numbers someone called and at what time. Your sponsor should also be able to drive you to realtor appointments until you have your own vehicle. Menwith Hill's primary mission is to provide "intelligence support for UK, US and allied interests". To find your next home, click on the installation you want to search for housing in and register as a user. He also detailed how the eavesdropping operations worked. The site contains an extensive satellite ground station and is a communications intercept and missile warning site. Consider what the world of media would look like without The Intercept. Over the history, the ECHELON system was the subject of a huge controversy due to its monitoring power. There are only 10 RAF personnel at Menwith Hill but there are around 1,000 US military and civilian personnel. Royal Air Force Menwith Hill or more simply RAF Menwith Hill is a Royal Air Force station near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England which provides communications and intelligence support. In 2014, she advised members of the U.K. Parliament that because the U.S. is not at war with countries such as Yemen or Pakistan, in the context of English and international law, the individuals who are targeted by drones in these countries are not combatants and their killers are not entitled to combatant immunity., If the U.K. government knows that it is transferring data that may be used for drone strikes against non-combatants that transfer is probably unlawful, Stratford told the members of Parliament. The military base deals with intelligence and communication services. RAF Menwith Hill is a Royal Air Force station near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England which provides communications and intelligence support services to the United Kingdom and the United States of America. According to Kenneth Bird, who worked at the base in the 1960s during the Cold War, it was focused then on monitoring high frequency radio signals in Eastern Europe. Intercepted conversations were recorded on Ampex tape recorders, Bird noted in his published 1997 account, with some transcribed by analysts in real-time using typewriters. [15] Protests also occurred at other US military locations in the UK such as Greenham Common. DSN: 262-7759/7758. Rome2rio is a door-to-door travel information and booking engine, helping you get to and from any location in the world. The base went through a series of updates in order to fulfill its new mission. Situated right at the hub of Britain's world-beating telecommunications system, Menwith Hill is one of the secret treasures of American heritage. But the prediction proved to be wrong. 12 October 2020. A Gate at Menwith Hill Station prohibiting entrance on March 12, 2014. [8], The station initially comprised a headquarters building, barracks, dependent housing and support facilities such as a cinema and social clubs. The base's operations and location have frequently attracted controversy, with local and national objectors protesting about the nature of work undertaken at the site, as well as the presenceof international military personnel. At spy outposts across the world, the NSA and its partners tap into these cables to monitor the data flowing throughthem. The base "does not attract the kind of press attention lavished on RAF Menwith Hill to the north and long may that continue," one NSA employee wrote in a March 2005 article for SIDtoday . Is climate change killing Australian wine? Normal Hours. [30], According to the Royal Air Force "RAF Menwith Hill is an integral part of the US DOD world-wide defence communications network. [11], In 1999 he wrote a report on COMINT entitled Interception Capabilities 2000 for the European Parliament. Realtor Services Rome2rio makes travelling from Brixton (Station) to RAF Menwith Hill easy. Prince Charles alongside Sqn Ldr Geoff Dickson (left) and director general of technology at GCHQ Gav Smith. In 2007, for instance, analysts at Menwith Hill used GHOSTHUNTER to help track down a suspected al Qaeda facilitator in Lebanon who was described as highly actionable, meaning he had been deemed a legitimate target to kill or capture. [1] Though the base is officially called RAF Menwith Hill, most of the staff there are US employees of the NSA. The revelations are yet another example of the unacceptable level of secrecy that surrounds U.K. involvement in the U.S. targeted killing program, Kat Craig, legal director of London-based human rights group Reprieve, told The Intercept. The first service on site included a high frequency monitoring system, dealing with intercepting the signals throughout the Soviet Union. What housing allowances am I eligible for? NSA employees at Menwith Hill have collaborated on a project to help eliminate terrorism targets in Yemen, for example, where the U.S. has waged a controversial drone bombing campaign that has resulted in dozens of civilian deaths. A top-secret document detailing the surveillance indicates that the information was to be passed to a secretive special operations unit known as Task Force 11-9, which would have been equipped to conduct a covert raid to kill or capture Sumayah. We dont have ads, so we depend on our members 35,000 and counting to help us hold the powerful to account. The site was improved with a huge satellite dish for communications. And yet these are acts of war. And normally when we have war, parliament should normally inform people that were involved in those. Although designated as an RAF station, It is made available to the United States Department of Defense (DOD) under the 1951 NATO Status of Forces Agreement and other classified arrangements. Copyright 1998 MilitaryBases.com Not affiliated with any government agencies. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. This mission protects our nation and others around the world.. How do I begin out-processing from housing? The 421st Air Base Group provides the majority of support services but the base is commanded by an officer of the RAF. The Housing Office will pass you a list of local letting agents. It now appears that this was far from the truth.. The domes, which protect radar antennas from the elements, are often known as the "golf balls". Members should use HEAT when preparing to transfer to their new assignment. [29], The US Air Force's 421st Air Base Squadron provides Menwith Hill with base and mission support services. Travel within United Kingdom is: Unrestricted . ", "Keighley grandmothers arrested over spy base protest", "Veteran peace protester sent to jail despite prisons crisis", "Protest camp looks to raise awareness of Menwith Hill", "Menwith Hill Station: A Case Study in Signal Intelligence Gathering During the Cold War", "The Billion Dollar Phone Tap America's Big Ear in the Heart of Yorkshire", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=RAF_Menwith_Hill&oldid=1143070985, This page was last edited on 5 March 2023, at 19:52. Menwith Hill is a US base on 545 acres of land in beautiful Nidderdale (one of the Yorkshire Dales) near Harrogate North Yorkshire HG3 2RF UK. The narrow roads are quiet and winding, surrounded by rolling green fields and few visible signs of life beyond the occasional herd of sheep. "[28], Coordinates: 540029N 14124W / 54.00806N 1.69W / 54.00806; -1.69. Hamilton, who represents the Labour Party, has doggedly attempted to find out basic information about the base, asking the government at least 40 parliamentary questions since 2010 about its activities. Richard Kolko, a spokesperson for the DNI, said in a statement: The men and women serving the intelligence community safeguard U.S. national security by collecting information, conducting analysis, and providing intelligence for informed decision making under a strict set of laws, policies and guidelines. We need to know what is being done in our name. The Committee raised concerns about the incompatibility of the interception of private and commercial communications with the fundamental right to respect for private life (Article 8 of the ECHR). Where will my children go to school at my new location? The site is a field station of the US National Security Agency (NSA), with personnel from other parts of the DOD also present. Central Michigan University (CMU) Online Education, Delta Dental TRICARE Retiree Dental Program. The modern Menwith Hill is a very different place. [13], In 1976, 21 years after the initial tenure arrangements were agreed with the US, the British Government renewed assurances that the site would continue to be available for a further 21 years. Homes in the UK are generally smaller than homes in the US and staircases are usually much narrower. [4], The site acts as a ground station for a number of satellites operated by the US National Reconnaissance Office,[5] on behalf of the NSA, with antennas contained in numerous distinctive white radomes, locally referred to as "the golf balls", and is alleged to be an element of the ECHELON system.[6].