A few people walk into RAF Lakenheath's Liberty Lodge last week. On-base lodging has been hard to come by since more than 240 personnel from a Germany-based unit and numerous newcomers have snatched up reservations. (Sean Kimmons / S&S)
A few people walk into RAF Lakenheath's Liberty Lodge last week. On-base lodging has been hard to come by since more than 240 personnel from a Germany-based unit and numerous newcomers have snatched up reservations. (Sean Kimmons / S&S)
Guests of RAF Mildenhall's Gateway Inn stand outside its front office last week. (Sean Kimmons / S&S)
Some newcomers to RAFs Lakenheath and Mildenhall are temporarily living in off-base hotels, following the arrival last week of more than 240 members of a Germany-based unit.
Crewmembers and 15 A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft from the 81st Fighter Squadron at Spangdahlem Air Base are slated to work out of Lakenheath over the next six weeks while the Spangdahlem runway is repaired.
The move comes at the height of the permanent-change-of-station season, when many airmen and family members transition between air bases.
Leo Boyce, manager of the Liberty Lodge at Lakenheath, said planning has been under way since February to deal with the influx of troops.
Liberty Lodge and Mildenhall’s Gateway Inn each took in 100 personnel from the 81st, while an off-base hotel called The Bird in Hand received 48, he said.
Boyce also said that 22 displaced families of incoming airmen will be redirected to off-base hotels over the next couple of months. This number could change if families alter reservations, though.
“For the most part, people who can’t get on-base lodging are understanding,” said Boyce, who coordinates with 11 off-base hotels in the local area during peak periods.
Senior Airman Shandra Mathes and her husband were heading to the lodge to find out where they’d be living off-base as soon as she finished a newcomer’s brief inside Lakenheath’s Airman and Family Readiness Center last week.
Mathes, a F-15C crew chief for the 493rd Fighter Squadron, could only get 20 days of on-base lodging and has to spend the next 10 days at a hotel on the economy, she said.
Newcomers are allowed to take up to 30 days of reimbursable lodging as long as they present valid hotel receipts and the proper paperwork to the base housing office.
However, the strong British pound sucks a lot more money out of airmen who pay for off-base lodging. Also, expenses for rental cars — needed by those who reside off-base — are not refundable unless authorized on one’s orders.
“It’s kind of stressful because we are shelling out a lot of money on [rental cars] right now. My sponsor does not have the time to shuttle me back and forth,” Mathes said.
“It’s great when you get the refunds, but, in the meantime, you’re maxing out your credit cards.”
On-base finance offices can set up advance payments to individuals who can’t handle the financial burden.
A technical sergeant, who didn’t want to release his name, said he was dumbfounded when he arrived on Lakenheath to find out there was no on-base lodging. He eventually worked something out where he’d shift between Lakenheath and Mildenhall base hotels every few days, and then end up at an off-base hotel.
“I have to move four times. I keep feeling rushed to buy [or rent] a house,” said the technical sergeant, who also attended the newcomer’s brief.
“I couldn’t imagine being a first-term airman and being put off base, not knowing what’s going on,” he added.
Boyce said that the 81st Fighter Squadron troops have on-base reservations until July 30. Until then, he recommends that people try to make reservations at least 30 days in advance, or call DSN 226-6713 to check if any space has opened open.
“If you plan ahead we’ll be able to work something out,” he said.
