Newly released police logs and video footage contradict official explanations of a near-collision between a U.K. police helicopter and unidentified aerial objects over a U.S. air base last year, an encounter authorities had previously dismissed as a routine fighter jet sighting.
According to documents the Daily Mail obtained through Britain’s Freedom of Information Act, the Nov. 22, 2024, flight forced a National Police Air Service (NPAS) EC135 helicopter to take emergency evasive action after reporting that two fast-moving craft “targeted” and pursued the aircraft over RAF Lakenheath, a major U.S. military installation in Suffolk.
The pilots described a steep dive to avoid impact as the objects matched their speed, roughly 165 knots (190 mph), for several minutes before disappearing from view.
Nick Pope, who formerly investigated UFOs for the U.K. Ministry of Defence, told Fox News Digital the episode shows how unidentified aerial phenomena, or UAP, have evolved from a fringe curiosity into a legitimate defense and aviation issue.
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“This disturbing incident perfectly illustrates why the UAP issue has gone from fringe to mainstream,” Pope said. “Whatever people’s beliefs, this is a serious safety-of-flight matter that demands urgent attention and action.”
Pope stressed that simply labeling such encounters “drones” can obscure what might be much more complex.
“‘Drone’ has become a convenient shorthand for anything unexplained that people see in the skies,” he said. “So we really don’t know what we’re dealing with here.”
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He added that the lack of data sharing between agencies and the tendency to downplay sightings could make the danger worse.
“I hope it doesn’t take a tragedy before something more is done,” Pope said. “There’s chronic underreporting of these sorts of incidents, so the true extent of the problem is likely far more serious.”
Logs cited by the Daily Mail say the NPAS crew called the encounter an “unprovoked pursuit” shortly after 10 p.m. while patrolling near the base.
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“They had to perform an emergency dive and described that they were pursued in the dive by two drones who matched their speed … and then pursued them for several minutes out of the area,” one police entry states.
Another notes the pilots “felt that drones had targeted them and chased them off at approximately 140 knots [161 mph].”
Additional police reports between Nov. 20 and 22 recorded roughly 20 drone sightings across RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall and RAF Feltwell. Logs described “10–15 drones … potentially into base airspace” and said aircraft were temporarily grounded after crossing flight paths.
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A witness using night-vision goggles reported “five to six drones” near the A1065 highway, while another described “large stationary things — tic-tacs — they are not birds.”
A U.K. military source who viewed the helicopter’s full 30-minute infrared video told the Daily Mail the footage shows “drones mirroring the helicopter’s movements” and performing a “corkscrew” maneuver impossible for an F-15.
“In the 30-minute video with pilot audio, nobody mentions F-15s,” the source said. “They only talk about the drones … basically forcing them out of the area.”
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Despite the multiple sightings, Britain’s Airprox Board, which investigates near-misses, concluded in its final report that the crew had mistaken the lights of a U.S. Air Force F-15 operating nearby. Radar data showed the helicopter and jet came within 1,700 feet, and the board reported no other returns.
Retired senior police detective Mike Morgan told the Daily Mail he was frustrated by official silence.
“There is a whole series of question marks about what went on in November 2024,” he said. “I have run into repeated efforts by the authorities to avoid answering even the most basic questions … What is so secret about this investigation?”
Defense-sector meteorologist Stuart Onyeche said he believes both the F-15 and the police helicopter were reacting to unmanned systems in the area.
“I’m inclined to trust the initial detail and assessment of the experienced helicopter pilots,” Onyeche told the Daily Mail. “It’s unarguable that an F-15 was also in the vicinity … but the unanswered question is what that fighter was being tasked to do or look for.”
The Daily Mail notes the Lakenheath case unfolded amid weeks of similar reports of drone incursions near U.S. military bases in New Jersey, the wider Northeast, and overseas.
The outlet also cites a joint FBI/DoD/NASA report warning that detection and jamming systems have “failed” to stop advanced drones, including a major swarm over Langley Air Force Base in Virginia in December 2023 that was kept quiet until revealed by The War Zone in March 2024.
Pope said that recurring incidents like the Lakenheath encounter, combined with limited transparency from officials, point to a growing gap in how governments handle unidentified aerial activity and that without better reporting and coordination, the risk to air safety will only continue to increase.
