Area 51 Workers Talk... But, Sorry, No Aliens!

New article published March. 27 in the Seattle Times...

Area 51 vets break silence: Sorry, but no space aliens or UFOs - Newly revealed stories from people who used to work at Area 51 shed light on a site still shrouded in mystery.

Noce and Barnes say they never saw anything connected to UFOs.

Barnes believes the Air Force and the "Agency" didn't mind the stories about alien spacecraft. They helped cover up the secret planes that were being tested.

On one occasion, he remembers, when the first jets were being tested at what Muroc Army Air Field, later renamed Edwards Air Force Base, a test pilot put on a gorilla mask and flew upside down beside a private pilot.

"Well, when this guy went back, telling reporters, 'I saw a plane that didn't have a propeller and being flown by a monkey,' well, they laughed at this guy — and it got where the guys would see [test pilots] and they didn't dare report it because everybody'd laugh at them," says Barnes.

Area 51 Presentation in Las Vegas October 7-8

Here's your chance to meet former Area 51 workers in person!

Agent Shadowhawk sends us the following press release on a public event coming up in Las Vegas. (Unfortunately, I won't be in the city at the time.) This presentation "will separate the myths from the realities of Area 51" -- if, that is, you want the myths separated from reality! (Personally, I prefer them mixed together.) Looks like George Knapp will be moderating (so they won't be totally separating myth from reality). --GC

On Wednesday, October 7th, and Thursday, October 8th, the Atomic Testing Museum and Roadrunners Internationale will separate the myths from the realities of Area 51 through a special presentation: SPY PLANES OF GROOM LAKE (AREA 51).

The Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada, is partnering with Roadrunners Internationale, an alumni organization for Groom Lake workers, to provide first-time public access to former U.S. Air Force, CIA, and contractor personnel who worked on some of the nation’s most closely guarded Cold War projects under a strict blanket of secrecy. This is an opportunity for the public to learn the history of the secret Groom Lake test site and the role it played during the Cold War, and to discuss newly declassified details about cutting edge technologies with the people who developed them. Lectures and moderated discussion panels will include former and current CIA staff, military commanders, historians, and other notable individuals.

There will be opportunities both days for the public to “meet and greet” former Area 51 test pilots, engineers, and technicians and ask them questions. A temporary exhibit will feature actual Area 51 artifacts, memorabilia, and photos. Events on Wednesday will include presentations on the history of Area 51 and Project OXCART by historian Peter Merlin, followed by a panel discussion with people who actually worked at the secret Groom Lake test site. Moderated by KLAS Channel 8 investigative reporter George Knapp, this panel will feature CIA Historian Dr. David Robarge and former pilots and engineers from Area 51. On Thursday, historian Paul Suhler will give an in-depth presentation on CIA projects Rainbow and Gusto and the design evolution of the triple-sonic A-12 spy plane, followed by a discussion panel of former Groom Lake pilots, staff, and technicians moderated by author Annie Jacobson.

Admission is $10 per person and FREE for Museum members. Museum admission is just an additional $5 for those attending this event. Books and souvenirs will be available for purchase at the Museum gift shop and from representatives of the CIA employee store.

Details:

Wednesday, October 7: Meet and Greet 10am-5pm. Area 51 historical overview by aerospace historian, Peter Merlin at 2pm. Project Oxcart history presentation by Peter Merlin at 4pm. Area 51 Panel Discussion, moderated by George Knapp at 6pm-8pm.

Thursday, October 8: Meet and Greet 10am-3pm. Archangel (A-1 through A-12) development history lecture by author, Paul Suhler at 11am. Area 51 Panel Discussion moderated by author, Annie Jacobson, 1pm-3pm.

The Atomic Testing Museum is open 7 days a week, Monday – Saturday 10 am to 5pm and Sunday 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Last tickets are sold at 4:30p.m. to20allow time to tour the Museum.

The Atomic Testing Museum is located at 755 E. Flamingo Rd., between Paradise Rd. and Swenson St., on the south side of the street. There is ample parking and the museum is ADA accessible. For more information please call (702) 794-5151.

Interceptor Cast: The Council of Elders

In the course of defending our honor at Dreamland Resort (see "Burning History"), SHADOWHAWK put together a pretty good summary of the original Interceptor core group. There were many others, but these nine compose the "Council of Elders" who the rest of you are expected to bow down to. At present the Council is 78% not dead, but this number could change at any time. Shadowhawk's summary, as posted:

For those who don't remember their history, there were nine of us.

Jim Goodall is considered to be the first. He was known by several code names (Yes, we all had silly code names. We never took ourselves too seriously). Jim was variously known as "The Great One," "Agent Orange," and "Spy Two." He was an aviation author who documented the Blackbirds and stealth aircraft from before the time many of them were delcassified. He spent agreat deal of time lurking around Tonopah and Area 51. For whatever reason, he was also intrigued by the testimony of Bob Lazar, who claimed to have worked with alien spacecraft in an underground government facility. Jim remains, fundamentally, an airplane nut, not a UFO nut and works in aircraft resoration at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.

John Andrews, "Spy One," of Testors Corporation - the company that brought us platic models of the "F-19" and "SR-75" - was a gentleman in all respects, with more manners and grace than all the other Interceptors combined. He worked for years designing plastic model kits of both real and hypothetical military craft. His greatest quest was to release models of secret aircraft before the government acknowledged their existence. He passed away some years ago.

Mark Farmer, "Agent X," was a freelance journalist and photographer from Juneau, Alaska. He was always one to push the limits of the envelope, be it in military watching, in extreme sports or in matters of taste. He had all the latest hardware: night-vision goggles, telescope, camera with a mammoth telephoto lens, scanner radio, survival rations for a week. And of course he was stylishly attired in camouflage fatigues that were exactly appropriate for this particular desert background.

Tom Mahood, "Hand," was a traffic engineer from Irvine, California, with a secret passion physics. After slinking around with us along the border of Area 51, he went on to earn a physics Master's degree in the subject of gravity, motivated by the desire to prove or debunk certain UFO claims. He then worked for a short time at a government laboratory in Washington State that was conducting serious research into the nature of gravity. He eventually returned to traffic engineering. He was an excellent investigator, completely focused on solving the current mystery, whatever it it happened to be. Once a mystery was solved, he cast it aside like a completed crossword puzzle and moved on. That was how he treated Area 51. Tom was the second person known to have climbed Tikaboo Peak for the express purpose of viewing Area 51 and the firs t to create a trail up to the peak. He also located the crash site of an A-12 (Article 125).

Mike Dornheim, "The Ayatollah," was a Los Angeles-based aviation journalist and arch-skeptic. As West Coast Editor for Aviation Week and Space technology Magazine, he fought unsucessfully against publishing unsubstantiated stories about myhical aerospace planes. He believed in data, not speculation, but his was a lone voice crying in the wilderness. He died in a tragic car accident a few years ago.

Jim Bakos, "Agent Zero," was a machinist from Hemet, California, known for his good-natured enthusiasm, whose proudest accomplishment was the design and manufacture of the official Interceptor decoder ring. Agent Zero owned his own machine shop, stamping out various metal connectors and other parts, and some of his biggest clients were military contractors. Not wanting to bite the hand that feeds, Zero kept a low profile regarding the news media.

Stuart Brown, "The Minister of Words," was a staff writer for Popular Science magazine, living in Hollywood, California. He documented some of the Interceptors' antics in print and in television interviews. He currently lives in New York.

Glenn Campbell, "Psychospy," was the only Interceptor who actually lived near Area 51. He was a computer programmer who developed an intense interest in all things related to Area 51 and moved to Nevada(Does this sound like anyone else we know?). In January 1993, he drove his camper from Boston to Rachel and moved in behind the Little A'Le'Inn. Over the next several years, he explored every detail of the area, published the "Area 51 Viewer's Guide" and organized the initial events that brought the Interceptors together. He appointed himself public relations officer for the secret base and entertained every form of visiting news media. He tread a narrow path between beliver and debunker, and was more interested in the psychlogican and cultural aspects of Area 51 than in secret aircraft. His greatest contribution was the ability to network people. By introducing a disparate collection of researchers to each other, he created something that was truly greater than the sum of its parts. He also introduced the first comprehensive Area 51 web site and unearthed key information that helped remove the shroud of mystery that surrounded the Groom Lake base.

I (Peter Merlin), a.k.a. "Shadowhawk," billed myself as an aerospace archaeologist and historian. I specialized in collecting data, documents, and artifacts realted to flight-testing and Area 51. I was also the first person known to have climbed Tikaboo Peak to look at Groom Lake. Of all the original Dreamland Interceptors (ODI's), I'm the only one who has continuously researched the subject of Area 51 without interruption in the years since the Interceptors faded from the scene. I'm proud of my contributions to Dreamland Resort (the best Area 51 web site ever!) and Roadrunners Internationale that help preseve the legacy of Area 51. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have in this endeavor without Glenn's help and that of the other ODI's. Let's not throw all that they have done on the fire.

"ODI" is okay, but we prefer "Council of Elders." They're the useless old guys who don't have much power left, but everyone pretends to honor them. They also get the best parking spots at the Black Mailbox on account of their seniority.

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photo source