SUBJECT: PROBING THE SECRETS OF NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE FILE: UFO2692
Date: 12-28-89 00:40
PROBING THE SECRETS OF NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE
By Steve Douglass
If you are ever on Highway 6, just outside of the little town of
Tonopah, Nevada, and you can brave the heat, the rattlesnakes, and the
isolation of the desert, get out of your car and wait. If you are
patient enough you just might be amazed by what you'll see.
At first you'll only hear it, a high-pitched whining sound in the
distance. Risking eye damage, you squint into the desert glare trying
to locate the source of the sound. Suddenly you'll see it. It's an
ominous-looking aircraft, perfectly flat on the bottom, pyramidal on
the top.
Roaring across the high desert with its twin tail and swept back
wings, it looks like a large black swallow. As it gets closer, you'll
feel the urge to duck down among the lizards and the cacti. Such action
is meaningless, though, for if you can see it, it can see you. So just
stand and watch the Nighthawk go through its paces.
Since the beginning of the year, the F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter
has been engaged in daylight training missions from its secret base in
Nevada. Still considered off limits to the press and public, the
security forces at the base take a dim view of prying eyes. However,
once in a while the Nighthawk must leave its protective nest.
It is on these rare occasions, when the Nighthawk is not surrounded
by razor wire, patrolling dogs or security teams, that is when you
might catch the F-117A strutting its stuff.
The secret Tonopah base is part of the Nellis Air Force Base military
operations area. This secret range, which covers a large portion of
south central Nevada, is the home of the Air Force's top secret proving
grounds. Edwards Air Force Base was once the premier testing center but
now is considered too public to test top secret stealth aircraft. The
F-117 base on the northwest corner of Nellis is remote and removed from
all but the most determined.
The F-117A Nighthawk is the official name of the stealth fighter bu
those who fly it have nicknamed it "The Wobbly Goblin." At slow speeds,
the fighter is apparently hard to handle, hence, the odd title. Another
term for the aircraft is "the sacred airplane" because when people see
it for the first time they usually remark "Oh my God!"
A total of 49 are thought to be based on the Tonopah range, also
known as Mellon Strip. The secret base, located in Area 30 on the
Nellis range, consists of 72 nuclear hardened, specially built hangers
for these secret aircraft.
The pilots who fly the F-117 are members of a new elite unit, the
445th Tactical Group. Most of the pilots first flew F-111 Aardvarks or
have Wild Weasel experience. The special unit, known as "Team One-
Furtim Vigilans" (vigilant by stealth) became operational in 1983.
Becuase of the secret nature of their missions, the pilots
are not allowed to acknowledge to civilian air traffic
controllers what type of craft they are flying. If asked, they
are to say they are an A-7 Corsair.
Team One squadron is not the only squadron flying strange-looking
aircraft on the Tonopah range. The 447th test and evaluation squadron,
the Red Eagles, is based there as well. The Red Eagles fly authentic
Soviet fighters. Captured in Afghanistan and turned over to the U.S.,
Mig 17s, 19s, 21s, 23s, 25s, 27s and Sukhoi Su20 Fighters are flown
regularly in Nellis' Red Flag war games.
Occuring almost every eight weeks, the Red Flag exercises are
conducted in much the same way as the Navy's Top Gun school is used to
train USAF pilots in dissimilar air combat tactics. What better way to
train than against real Soviet fighters? To add to the realism, the
Nellis range even is dotted with real Soviet air defense radars and
SAMS (surface to air missiles) to give training pilots the feel of the
real thing.
There is yet another secret base located in the middle of Nellis.
Groom Lake, in an area called Dreamland, is known to be the test base
of the mysterious Aurora and the F-19 stealth fighter. The Aurora, the
stealth replacement for the SR-71 Blackbird and the F-19, the stealth
replacement for the F-15 Eagle, is said to be flying from the Watertown
Strip.
Teh Air Force has reportedly been testing the two top secret aircraft
in Dreamland, Area 51, since 1980. (The SR-71 Blackbird was test flown
in complete secrecy.) Other aircraft likely to be test flown from
Dreamland in the near future are prototypes for the ATF (Advanced
Tactical Fighter), the Phalanx Dragon, a stealth helicopter killer, and
the A-12 (Navy Advanced Tactical Aircraft), a replacement for the A-6
intruder.
Although the bulk of stealth aircraft operations seem to be centered
around Nevada, it is said that stealth aircraft have been seen at other
bases as well. Last April the USAF said the F-117A would be used at
bases nationwide to help integrate thge stealth technology within the
rest of the Air Force inventory. The F-117A has been seen flying near
Yuma, Arizona; Edwards AFB in Calfiornia, and Kadena AFB in Okinawa.
Recently it was rumored that F-117s are being stationed at the
recently opened Roswell Air Force Base in New Mexico. The Roswell strip
was constructed originally for heavy bombers during WWII and Vietnam
but closed in the late sixties. Residents of th area report that
strange aircraft are once again slying out of the base. The White Sands
missile range is not far from Roswell and the F-117A may be using the
range to test the stealth cruise missile, General Dynamics AGM-129.
Another black aircraft program by General Dynamics known
only as Project 100 is even more secret ahtn all other stealth
programs. Little is known about the project except that it is
thought to be test flying out of Holliman AFB near Alamagordo,
New Mexico, and only at night. A military radio net has been
heard on various frequencies in the Holloman area (see frequency
list) and it may be the testing of the Project 100 aircraft.
MONITORING
Trying to monitor the secret air force is nearly as hard as catching
a glimpse of them. Best bets are the HF and UHF frequencies of the
flight test bases and aircraft manufacturers. Also, a good place to
monitor would be SAC and TAC frequencies. Another good place to listen
is air traffic control centers near test areas.
So get cracking, heat up your set, and maybe you'll be the first to
monitor the top secret Aurora and F-19!
FREQUENCIES
HOLLOMAN AFB, ALAMAGORDO, NEW MEXICO
Approach 324.3 MHz UHF
Departure 255.9 MHz UHF
Holloman flight test net/White Sands
Primary 260.8 MHz UHF
Secondary 264.9 MHz UHF
Other UHF frequencies monitored
397.9, 353.6, 364.2, 376.1, 189.4, and 251.1
HF link 9.023 MHz USB
SATCOM links mentioned 262.925 MHz uplink; 297.525 downlink
Call signs heard: Sierra Papa, Sierra Pete, Ringmaster,
Battlestaff, Guardian Papa, Dark Star, Dark Star Oscar
ROSWELL AIR FIELD, NEW MEXICO
Approach 239.6 MHz UHF
Tower 272.7 MHz UHF
Military Net
Primary 305.6 MHz UHF
Secondary 397.9 MHz UHF
Other frequencies monitored
259.2, 305.6, 348.7
NELLIS AFB, NEVADA
Approach 279.7 MHz UHF
Tower 324.3 MHz UHF
Ground control 275.8 MHz UHF
Clearance Delivery 289.4 MHz UHF
ATIS 270.1 MHz UHF
Nellis Military Operations Area
Dreamland base 255.8 MHz UHF
Sally corridor 343.0 MHz UHF
Groom Lake approach 361.3 MHz UHF
Watertown Strip approach 297.65 MHz UHF
EDWARDS AFB, CALIFORNIA
Tower 269.9 MHz UHF
Edwards command post
(Conform) 304.0 MHz UHF
Edwards VHF ground
control 121.8 Mhz UHF
Edwards approach 318.1 MHz UHF
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