Awwww Bugger...
Ex Harrogate bloke here and been in France for the past 26 years...
A long way away but if I can make it I will let you know...
If not, have a pint of Tetleys or 2 or 3 or 10 for me... Otherwise a couple of decent single malts.
This used to be my den :
www.thetimbleinn.co.uk...
It was much more traditional back in the early 80s but then bloody Southern rich puffy yuppies got hold of our heritage...
Shame the meeting cannot take place there because of the following :
This is where I used to do all of my serious drinking many many years ago and is smack bang next to the RAF base Menwith Hill (*cough cough*) early
warning base from what was given to the general public (even the pub had one of those fake early warning nuclear attack warning speakers inside at the
time...)
The *cough* official Menwith Hill history :
RAF Menwith Hill is situated off the A59 Skipton Road, approximately nine miles west of Harrogate in North Yorkshire and occupies about one square
mile of moorland.
The base is owned by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and made available to the US Department of Defense (DoD).
As with all sites the Government make available to the United States Visiting Forces (USVF), RAF Menwith Hill is made available under the NATO Status
of Forces Agreement of 1951 and additional confidential arrangements.
Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) is entitled to possession of the site and retains control over its use and its facilities, though the administration
of the base is the responsibility of the US authorities.
The base comprises family housing, community facilities and high-technology installations and structures set on the southern edge of the Yorkshire
Dales, just outside the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
RAF Menwith Hill works closely with local and national authorities on all matters relating to planning, conservation and the environment.
More here :
www.raf.mod.uk...
However... at the time this was an actual FULL TIME USA base... I went there on at least five 4th of July celebrations as my now deceased brother
was a chef at the canteen and we had invites... (Only ever saw USA personel) ... It was good fun...
Common rumour and speculation says that the base was used for other purposes (The Echalon project) such as the one depicted below :
Once known only by the code name Field Station 8613, the secret base — now called Menwith Hill Station — is located about nine miles west of the
small town of Harrogate in North Yorkshire. Originally used to monitor Soviet communications through the Cold War, its focus has since dramatically
shifted, and today it is a vital part of the NSA’s sprawling global surveillance network.
For years, journalists and researchers have speculated about what really goes on inside Menwith Hill, while human rights groups and some politicians
have campaigned for more transparency about its activities. Yet the British government has steadfastly refused to comment, citing a longstanding
policy not to discuss matters related to national security.
Now, however, top-secret documents obtained by The Intercept offer an unprecedented glimpse behind Menwith Hill’s razor wire fence. The files reveal
for the first time how the NSA has used the British base to aid “a significant number of capture-kill operations” across the Middle East and North
Africa, fueled by powerful eavesdropping technology that can harvest data from more than 300 million emails and phone calls a day.
More here :
theintercept.com...
And this :
www.euronet.nl...
Project Echalon :
Menwith Hill is the largest electronic monitoring station in the world. It is run by the US National Security Agency (NSA), which monitors the world's
communication for US intelligence.
Menwith Hill employs 1,200 US civilians and servicemen to work around the clock inside "hardened" buildings intercepting and analysing communications
mainly from Europe, Russia and the Middle East.
Until a few years ago, the existence of the NSA was a secret and its charter and any mention of its duties are still classified.
But, it does have a Web site) in which it describes itself as being responsible for the signals intelligence and communications security activities
of the US government. *cough cough again*
All telecommunications traffic to and from Europe and passing through Britain is intercepted at the base, including private telephone calls, faxes,
emails and other communications.
Much of the information is collected, processed and relayed back to the United States automatically. A great deal of this information comes from spy
satellites and the base has a number of large white golfballs or "radomes" containing satellite receiving dishes.
The importance of MHS to US intelligence activities has recently been emphasised by the closure of other UK stations run by NSA, and by its new
designation as a Regional Sigint Operations Centre (RSOC) which is responsible for running remote, automated intelligence-gathering sites.
So... back to the piss up... :
Why not hold it at the timble Inn... would be a great place for tin foil hat fetishists no?
Warmest respects
Lags
Ps. Erm, why is there all of the sudden loads of blokes in black SUVs with GMC written on the front running around my house with massive big guns with
laser sights shouting "GO GO GO"?
PPs.
Otherwise I can propose to hold a meeting in France... We have loads of camping space and a massive great humongous vineyard???
edit on
4-1-2017 by Lagomorphe because: Crap editing