RAF Fylingdales, opened in 1962, is a BMEWS or Ballistic Missile Early Warning System built on Fylingdales Moor, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Its original primary purpose was to give the British Government warning of an impending missile attack, the so called four minute warning (though in practice three minutes was more likely). A secondary role is the detection of orbiting objects (allowing for example 'sensitive operations' to be carried out when prying 'eyes in the sky' are not looking). 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Categories: Military stubs | Radar networks | Cold War ... The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... The four minute warning was conceived by the British Government during the Cold War. ...

While the base remains a 'British asset' operated and commanded by the RAF it also forms one of three stations in the United States BMEWS network (the United States also funds the cost of the radar units). The other two stations in the network are Thule AB, Greenland and Clear AFS, Alaska. To this end a USAF officer is stationed at the base. The data grab obtained by Fylingdales is shared fully and freely with the United States where it feeds into NORAD's systems in Cheyenne Mountain. The Royal Air Force (often abbreviated to RAF) is the air force branch of the UK Armed Forces. ... State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ... Seal of the Air Force. ... NORAD is short for: North American Aerospace Defense Command Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... 1,400 people work inside Cheyenne Mountain — they enter through this tunnel. ...

Originally the station, built by RCA and maintained by RCA(Great Britain)now SERCO plc, comprised three large 40 metre diameter 'golfballs' or geodisic domes (radomes) containing mechanically steered radar. It became a local tourist attraction as a result (even though it still does not appear on any UK map). Coach tours to the nearby coastal town of Whitby drive past the site, at which point drivers will typically switch the radio on and allow passengers to listen to the interference caused by the radomes. It is also a centre for protests by groups such as CND. Between 1989 and 1992 Raytheon completed a contract which saw the domes replaced by Active Electronically Scanned Arrays or AESA (phased array) radar. These radars are mounted on each face of a truncated tetrahedron, typically referred to as the "pyramid". This gives Fylingdales a uniqueness amongst its peers in that it covers a full 360 degrees. Each of the three arrays contains around 2560 transmit/receive modules, total peak power output equates to some 2.5MW with a tracking range of 3000+ miles. This long range radar antenna (approximately 40m (130ft) in diameter) rotates on a track to observe activities near the horizon. ... See also Whitby (disambiguation) Whitby, Yorkshire, England Whitby is a fishing port and tourist destination in North Yorkshire on the north-east coast of England, it is situated 47 miles from the county town of York, at 54 deg. ... CND logo In British politics, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament has been at the forefront of the peace movement in the United Kingdom and claims to be Europes largest single-issue peace campaign. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) is a major United States military contractor based in Waltham, Massachusetts. ... A tetrahedron (plural: tetrahedra) is a polyhedron composed of four triangular faces, three of which meet at each vertex. ...

In the late 1990's with the United States deciding to fully pursue a National Missile Defense plan Fylingdales attracted further publicity. To improve tracking capabilites (for launches from Africa and the Middle East) the United States wanted the use of Fylingdales as part of its NMD network. After receiving a formal request from the U.S., the British Government agreed to its use as an NMD tracking facility in 2003. The upgrade, now underway by Boeing, will replace many internal systems; computers, displays, etc. to improve resolution and tracking accuracy. No external changes are being made in direct relation to these upgrades and no power increases will occur. This decision has led to renewed demonstrations by CND and other anti-nuclear and anti-war protestors. It has also complicated Britain's fragile relationship with certain EU states such as France. A payload launch vehicle carrying a prototype exoatmospheric kill vehicle is launched from Meck Island at the Kwajalein Missile Range on Dec. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) is a leading American aircraft and aerospace manufacturer, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, with its largest production facilities in Everett, Washington, near Seattle, Washington. ...

According to an article published in late 2004 the British Government has also secretly agreed to a U.S. request to station missile interceptors at Fylingdales Moor. This has subsequently been denied by the Ministry of Defence and Government. This articles deals with the British ministry, see defence minister for other countries. ...

Reference

• Fylingdales: Radar on the Moors, BBC News Online, 14 December 2002
• The Fylingdales Site - run by Yorkshire CND
• UK ready to help Son of Star Wars, BBC News Online, 15 January 2003
• MoD denies US missiles set for UK, BBC News Online, 17 October 2004