Area 51 (Groom Lake)
USAF facility at Groom Lake, Nevada — officially denied for 58 years until the CIA released a declassified history acknowledging its existence in 2013.
Overview
Area 51 is the common name for a highly classified United States Air Force facility within the Nevada Test and Training Range. Its primary purpose is publicly unknown, however based on historical evidence it most likely supports the development and testing of experimental aircraft and weapons systems. The U.S. government did not officially acknowledge the existence of the base until June 25, 2013, following a FOIA request submitted in 2005 by Jeffrey T. Richelson of the National Security Archive.
Timeline
- 1955Site selected for U-2 spy plane testing by CIA and Lockheed.
- 1962A-12 Oxcart program begins at site.
- 1989-05-11Bob Lazar appears on KLAS-TV claiming to have worked on reverse-engineered alien craft at 'S-4.'
- 2005-06-17FOIA request filed by Jeffrey Richelson, National Security Archive.
- 2013-08-15CIA releases declassified document officially acknowledging Area 51.
Evidence on Record
- 01CIA document 'CIA and the U-2 Program, 1954–1974' by Gregory Pedlow and Donald Welzenbach (released 2013)
- 02USGS satellite imagery; Nevada Department of Wildlife observation reports
Theories & Disputes
Reverse-engineering of recovered non-human craft (Bob Lazar, 1989).
Continued development of stealth aircraft (mainstream; F-117 confirmed; current programs classified).
Test site for directed-energy weapons.