In July 2022, Atlantic CommTech Corp was awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force for ”engineering services and technical expertise as needed to improve sustainability, extend service life of WS3 [Weapon Storage and Security System], and ensure systems continue to meet US Air Force in Europe and NATO requirements”.[i] While the current description of the contract on the U.S. Department of Defense website adds that work will be carried out ”in various oversea locations”, other descriptions explicitly mention the Lakenheath Airbase in the United Kingdom[ii], which will reportedly again become a storage location for U.S. nuclear bombs[iii]. The contract has a potential value of $14.4 million and work is expected to be complete by July 2025.[iv]
[i] Contracts for July 18, 2022 (2022) U.S. Department of Defense. Available at: https://www.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract/Article/3096893/ (Accessed: 17 December 2024).
[ii] CONTRACT to ATLANTIC COMMTECH CORPORATION | USAspending, 18 July 2022. Available at: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_FA942222C0004_9700_-NONE-_-NONE- (Accessed: 17 December 2024).
[iii] ‘US planning to station nuclear weapons in UK amid threat from Russia – report’, The Guardian, 27 January 2024. Available at: US planning to station nuclear weapons in UK amid threat from Russia – report | UK news | The Guardian.
Matt Korda & Hans Kristensen, ‘Increasing Evidence That The US Air Force’s Nuclear Mission May Be Returning To UK Soil’, Federation of American Scientists Blogs, 28 August 2023. Available at: Increasing Evidence that the US Air Force’s Nuclear Mission May Be Returning to UK Soil – Federation of American Scientists (fas.org). See also Hans Kristensen, ‘Lakenheath Air Base Added To Nuclear Weapons Storage Site Upgrades’, Federation of American Scientists Blogs, 11 April 2022. Available at: https://fas.org/blogs/security/2022/04/lakenheath-air-base-added-to-nuclear-weapons-storage-site-upgrades/.
[iv] CONTRACT to ATLANTIC COMMTECH CORPORATION | USAspending, 18 July 2022. Available at: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_FA942222C0004_9700_-NONE-_-NONE- (Accessed: 20 December 2023).
Last updated: 2025-02-27 20:07:34