RAF Fairford: The Bomber Forward Operating Base in the Cotswolds
In the Cotswolds of Gloucestershire, near Cirencester, RAF Fairford is the U.S. Air Force's bomber outpost in Europe, the forward field the big strategic bombers fly from when they deploy across the Atlantic. Most of the year a small permanent squadron keeps the long runway, the fuel, and the facilities ready; then a Bomber Task Force arrives, B-52s or the stealth bombers, and the base fills with aircrew and maintainers for the duration. Once a year it fills for a different reason, when Fairford hosts the Royal International Air Tattoo, the largest military airshow in the world. It is a quiet corner of the English countryside until the mission, or the law, says otherwise.
A serious charge against an Airman deployed to a foreign field, a long way from any American courtroom, is no place to settle for the nearest available lawyer. Court martial defense is the entire practice of Bilecki Law Group, and the firm tries these cases across Europe from its office in Tampa. We fly in and try the case, because for a contested matter what decides it is the trial experience of the lawyer in the room, not the distance to England.
The Bombardier Who Finished the Run
A bomber base lives on whether the crew finishes the run, and no one ever finished one like Second Lieutenant Jack W. Mathis. On March 18, 1943, leading his formation's bomb run over Vegesack, flak nearly tore his arm off and ripped open his side, and the blast threw him to the back of the bomber's nose. He crawled back to his bombsight, lined up the target, and released his bombs on the aim point before he collapsed dead over the sight. He became the first Airman of the Eighth Air Force to receive the Medal of Honor. He finished the run when finishing it cost him everything. That refusal to break off short of the objective is the standard we bring to a case at Fairford.
Why Airmen at Fairford Bring Us In
We win court martial cases. Military defense is all we do, and Airmen fly us in from all over the world because of our trial record. The military justice system is not built to find the truth; it exists to preserve good order and discipline, and a command running a watched strategic mission will make an example of an Airman to show it holds the standard. A serious case is investigated by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and for sexual assault and other covered offenses the decision to refer charges to a court martial no longer belongs to your commander but goes to an independent Special Trial Counsel. Your Area Defense Counsel may be capable but carries a heavy caseload inside the same system, which is why Airmen serious about winning bring in their own counsel.
UCMJ Charges We Defend at RAF Fairford
We handle every type of court martial at RAF Fairford. The charges below are the ones we see most, not the only ones we take.
Flight Status and Aviation Boards (UCMJ Article 92). For a rated bomber aircrew member or a career enlisted aviator, an allegation can ground you before it ever reaches a courtroom. A flight discipline matter, a safety incident, a positive test, or any serious charge can pull you off flying status and put your wings in front of a Flying Evaluation Board, which can end a flying career on a standard far below what a court martial requires. We defend the criminal charge and the Flying Evaluation Board together, because either consequence can end a career on its own.
Sexual Assault and Sex Offenses (UCMJ Article 120 / Article 134). These allegations route to an independent Special Trial Counsel now, and the command treats a report as established before the investigation is finished, all the more so on a small deployed field where a case draws attention fast. These cases demand counsel who will run an independent investigation and contest the case rather than let the allegation stand in for proof, because a conviction means confinement, a federal record, and a place on a sex offender registry.
Domestic Violence and Assault (UCMJ Articles 128b and 128). Domestic violence under Article 128b is charged as aggressively as any offense in the UCMJ since the Office of Special Trial Counsel took these cases over. It covers a spouse, an intimate partner, or a family member, and it treats strangulation or suffocation as its own charge that the government can bring even with no visible injury. A qualifying conviction also triggers the federal Lautenberg firearms bar, which can end an Air Force career because an Airman has to be able to carry a weapon. We also defend assault under Article 128, where self defense is a recognized defense.
Drugs and Off Duty Conduct (UCMJ Articles 112a and 134). Drug cases often turn on the chain of custody and the government's burden to prove any use was knowing and wrongful. An Airman is subject to the UCMJ off duty, so a night out in the local towns or an incident off base comes back to the command. A serious off base matter in England can also be taken up by the British police and prosecuted in a Crown court, on a separate track from your command, so get counsel involved before you talk to anyone.
A Career and a Reputation Worth Defending
We do not pretend that every Airman who calls us from England is innocent. What matters is how serious the case is, not your rank. If a matter is genuinely minor, your Area Defense Counsel can handle it, and we will tell you so honestly. But when the case is serious, everything is on the line at once: your career, your wings, your retirement, your good name, and your freedom. A court martial conviction is a federal criminal conviction, and the applicable military sentencing parameters set a confinement range the judge has to work within, two and a half to ten years for sexual assault and ten to twenty for rape, with a departure requiring specific facts in writing, plus any required or adjudged punitive discharge and, on a covered sex offense, sex offender registration. That is why you fight. The court’s jurisdiction and the convicted offense determine which sentencing rules apply; some offenses use separate sentencing criteria rather than these ranges.
If you are facing an investigation or court martial at Fairford, reach out for a free defense strategy session. We will tell you exactly what you are facing and how we would defend it. The government is already building its case. The only question is whether anyone is building yours.
FAQ
I'm a bomber aircrew member and I've been pulled off flying status over an investigation. Can I lose my wings even if I beat the charge?
Yes, because the Flying Evaluation Board and the court martial are separate tracks with separate standards. The board can act on the same allegation on a far lower standard than a conviction requires, so you can win the criminal case and still lose your aviation career if the board side is not fought. That is why the underlying allegation has to be defended on both fronts from the start, and we handle the criminal charge and the Flying Evaluation Board together.
OSI wants to interview me at Fairford. Do I have to talk to them?
No. You are not required to sit for an Office of Special Investigations interview or answer their questions. Under Article 31b of the UCMJ you have the right to remain silent and to a lawyer, and you can invoke both at any point, including before the interview begins. OSI is collecting evidence, not giving you a chance to explain. Decline, ask for counsel, and call a defense lawyer before you give any statement.
Something happened off base in England. Could the British authorities get involved too?
They can. Under the agreement that governs U.S. forces here, the British authorities can claim jurisdiction over off base conduct, so a serious matter can be investigated by the British police and prosecuted in a Crown court on a separate track from the UCMJ case your command is pursuing. Investigations in the two systems may overlap, and what you say to one can affect the other, so do not give a statement to anyone until you have talked to a defense lawyer. The SOFA allocates primary jurisdiction and limits a second trial for the same offense; overlapping investigations do not mean that both countries may freely try the same charge.