Why area 51

It is also illegal to fly over Area 51, although the site is now visible on satellite images. The base has runways up to 12,ft 2. The facility is next to two other restricted military areas: the Nevada Test Site, where US nuclear weapons were tested from the s to the s, and the Nevada Test and Training Range. The entire range covers more than 2. According to the US military, it represents "a flexible, realistic and multidimensional battle-space to conduct testing tactics development, and advanced training".

Area 51 was created during the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union as a testing and development facility for aircraft, including the U-2 and SR Blackbird reconnaissance planes. Although it opened in , its existence was only officially acknowledged by the CIA in August Although official information is sparse, it is believed that the US military continues to use Area 51 to develop cutting-edge aircraft.

About 1, people are believed to work there, many commuting on charter flights from Las Vegas. Annie Jacobsen, who has written about the history of Area 51, told the BBC that some of the world's most advanced espionage programmes are at the site. Extraterrestrial Highway. National Atomic Testing Museum. Nevada National Security Site Tour.

This Location:. City Rachel. The spot chosen by the CIA, a desolate patch of high desert around a dry lakebed on the grounds of an already-secret missile testing range, would later become known as Area The source — later revealed to be an engineer named Bob Lazar — claimed the government was studying extraterrestrial technology and lifeforms on the grounds of Area For decades, the U.

But that history made no mention of aliens, flying saucers, or any other extraterrestrial technologies or lifeforms. To understand the heightened level of security at Area 51, Jacobsen, the author, points to a passage in her book about a near-catastrophe there. Shortly before a scheduled nuclear-weapons test, a top security official got a call that a nearby building was under attack.

A group of guards were taking gunfire from attackers in a helicopter. Scrambling to react, the Navy put on alert several nuclear-armed submarines, which aimed their warheads at the Nevada Test Site, as it was then known. In the end, Jacobsen writes, the helicopter attack turned out to be a test by a security contractor hired to help protect Area 51 — a test that the company had failed to mention to its government partners.

Judging by the Area 51 documents, working there comes with a brutal commute. According to maps included in the documents, there are limited entry points in the form of heavily guarded gates into the Nevada National Security Site and from there into Area The documents make reference to a shuttle bus that transported employees who worked at Area 51 to and from work.

According to the documents, a group of unnamed YouTubers attempted to install a tracker on the employee bus to monitor its path in and out of Area The bus-tracker incident was just one in a spike of surveillance and trespassing issues that law enforcement officials mention in the Area 51 docs.

Also, remember the government doesn't really want you peering into Area Both Merlin and Pocock confirmed that they have been closely observed or even intimidated by guards and security including an F fly-by.

Do not trespass under any circumstances or arrests and heavy fines await you. Type keyword s to search. By Matt Blitz. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

The U-2 high altitude reconnaissance aircraft, in the late s. Air Force Getty Images. I Want To Believe. Powers was eventually shot down in the USSR in Air Force. RC Turbo Timber Plane. RC 4 Channel Plane. RC Apprentice Trainer Plane. Related Story. Area 51 on July 20, Getty Images.

Matt Blitz Matt is a history, science, and travel writer who is always searching for the mysterious and hidden.

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