“Some are even mad because they worked on these things and built these amazing planes,” Merlin says. Many have disregarded this as fiction, and are even offended at the notion-including Merlin, who has spent years talking with former Area 51 engineers and employees angered by all the fuss about E.T. It seems he was most likely flying a foreign jet obtained by the United States.Įven so, the alien conspiracies gained ground in 1989 when Bob Lazar claimed in an interview on Las Vegas local news that he’d seen aliens, and had helped to reverse-engineer alien spacecraft while working at the base. was killed under mysterious circumstances when his plane crashed in Nevada and the Pentagon would not immediately ID the aircraft. Now, instead of seeing MiG-17s and 21s, there’s MiG-29s and SU-27s.” “They learned that you can’t out-turn it, but you can outrun it. and pitted our own fighters against them to develop tactics,” says Merlin. You got folks claiming it’s extraterrestrial when it’s really good old American know-how.” More declassified documents reveal Area 51’s role in “Project Have Doughnut,” a 1970s attempt to study covertly obtained Soviet MiGs. Over the years, the A-12 and numerous stealth aircraft like Bird of Prey, F-117A, and TACIT BLUE have all been developed and tested in the Nevada desert. U-2 operations halted in the late 1950s, but other top-secret military aircraft continued tests at Area 51. While the 1998 version does have significant redactions when referencing the name and location of the U-2 test site, the nearly un-redacted version from 2013 reveals much more, including multiple references to Area 51, Groom Lake, and even a map of the area. What’s also interesting about the most recent 2013 report is that it confirms Area 51’s existence. So, “natural phenomena” or “high-altitude weather research” became go-to explanations for UFO sightings, including in 1960 when Gary Powers’ U-2 was shot down over Russia. Naturally, Air Force officials knew the majority of these unexplained sightings were U-2 tests, but they were not allowed to reveal these details to the public. Powers was eventually shot down in the USSR in 1960. Kelly Johnson, left, and Francis Gary Powers with U-2 aircraft behind. To convince workers to come, Kelly Johnson, one of the leading engineers of the U-2 project, gave it a more enticing name: Paradise Ranch. Known by its map designation as Area 51, this middle-of-nowhere site became a new top-secret military base. They found it in the southern Nevada desert near a salt flat known as Groom Lake, which had once been a World War II aerial gunnery range for Army Air Corps pilots. One of the first orders of business was to track down a remote, covert location for training and testing. In November 1954, President Eisenhower approved the secret development of a high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft called the U-2 program. Air Force sent low-flying aircraft on reconnaissance missions over the USSR, but they were at constant risk of being shot down. Is Anyone Out There? The Fermi Paradox, Explained.6 Solid Reasons to Actually Believe in Aliens.Others claim there are embedded sensors in the approaching road. Locals says the base knows every desert tortoise and jackrabbit that hops the fence. On the distant hilltop, there’s a white pickup truck with a tinted windshield peering down on everything below. One would think that America’s much-mythicized, top-secret military base would be under closer guard, but make no mistake: they are watching.īeyond the gate, cameras see every angle. It’s protected by little more than a chain link fence, a boom gate, and intimidating trespassing signs. In the middle of the barren Nevada desert, there’s a dusty unmarked road that leads to the front gate of Area 51. While aliens aren’t taking up residence in the compound, what is going on there is just as interesting. Books, TV shows, and even massive online “raids” have tried to glimpse beyond its stark signs, warning against trespassers. Contact the vendor for more details.For decades, Nevada’s Area 51 Air Force facility has represented the eye of a conspiratorial hurricane that swirls around “evidence” that aliens (and their technology) exist and are hiding behind its walls. TimeTrack also offers an on-premise licensing model. TimeTrack Cloud – $4.99/month or $34.99/year
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