Area 51 is a very secret United States Air Force (USAF) facility located within the Nevada Test and Training Range in southern Nevada, 83 miles (134 km) north-northwest of Las Vegas. Managed by Edwards Air Force Base, the facility is officially named Homey Airport (ICAO: KXTA, FAA LID: XTA) or Groom Lake, which is named after the salt flat near its airfield. Information about its operations is not made public, but the USAF states it is an open training area. It is widely believed to support the development and testing of experimental aircraft and weapons. The USAF and U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) acquired the site in 1955, mainly for testing the Lockheed U-2 aircraft. All research and events at Area 51 are classified as Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI). The CIA confirmed the base’s existence on June 25, 2013, after a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from 2005. The base has been the subject of many conspiracy theories and is often linked to stories about unidentified flying objects (UFOs). The surrounding area, including the small town of Rachel on the "Extraterrestrial Highway," is a popular tourist destination.
Geography
The original rectangular base, which is 6 by 10 miles (10 by 16 km), is part of the "Groom box," a restricted airspace area measuring 23 by 25 miles (37 by 40 km). This area is connected to the road network inside the Nevada Test Site (NTS). Paved roads lead south to Mercury and west to Yucca Flat, a region of the NTS. From Groom Lake, the wide and well-maintained Groom Lake Road passes through a pass in the Jumbled Hills. This road previously led to mines in the Groom basin but has been improved since the mines closed. It passes a security checkpoint, and the restricted area around the base extends further east. After leaving the restricted area, Groom Lake Road slopes downward to the floor of the Tikaboo Valley. It passes dirt-road entrances to small ranches before joining State Route 375, also called the "Extraterrestrial Highway," south of Rachel.
Area 51 borders Yucca Flat, where 739 of the 928 nuclear tests conducted at the NTS by the United States Department of Energy took place. Yucca Mountain, a nuclear waste storage site, is located southwest of Groom Lake.
Groom Lake is a salt flat in Nevada that has runways for the Nellis Bombing Range Test Site airport (XTA/KXTA), which is on the north side of Area 51. The lake is 25 miles (40 km) south of Rachel, Nevada, in the Groom Lake Valley, a part of the Tonopah Basin. It is about 4,409 feet (1,344 meters) above sea level. At its widest point, the lake is approximately 3¾ miles (6 km) from north to south and 3 miles (5 km) from east to west.
History
The origin of the name "Area 51" is unknown. Some believe it comes from an Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) numbering grid, but Area 51 is not part of this system. It is located near Area 15. Another idea is that the number 51 was chosen because the AEC was unlikely to use it. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) calls the facility Homey Airport (XTA/KXTA) and Groom Lake. The name "Area 51" appeared in a CIA document from the Vietnam War. Other names for the facility include "Paradise Ranch" and "Dreamland," which is the call sign for the surrounding area. The U.S. Air Force refers to it as "an operating location near Groom Dry Lake." The airspace around the facility is called Restricted Area 4808 North (R-4808N).
Lead and silver were found in the southern part of the Groom Range in 1864. An English company, Groome Lead Mines Limited, helped fund the Conception Mines in the 1870s, which gave the area its name. Nearby mines included Maria, Willow, and White Lake. J. B. Osborne and his partners took control of Groom in 1876, and Osborne’s son later owned it in the 1890s. Mining continued until 1918, then restarted after World War II and lasted until the early 1950s.
The airfield at Groom Lake opened in 1942 as Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field, with two unpaved runways each 5,000 feet (1,524 meters) long.
The CIA created the Groom Lake test facility in April 1955 for Project AQUATONE, which involved developing the Lockheed U-2 aircraft. Project director Richard M. Bissell Jr. needed a secret location for testing and training because of the project’s secrecy. He sent an inspection team to Groom Lake. Lockheed’s U-2 designer, Kelly Johnson, said the lakebed was perfect for testing because it was flat and natural. The surrounding mountains and the Nevada Test Site protected the area from visitors. The CIA asked the AEC to buy the land and label it "Area 51" on maps.
Johnson named the area "Paradise Ranch" to attract workers to the remote site. The name later became "the Ranch." A survey team arrived in May 1955 and built a 5,000-foot (1,500-meter) runway on the lakebed. The base started with simple shelters, workshops, and trailer homes. By early 1956, the base had a paved runway, hangars, a control tower, and basic living spaces. A movie theater and volleyball court were among the few amenities. Personnel began arriving in July 1955. The first U-2 arrived on July 24, 1955, from Burbank, California, on a cargo plane. Regular flights connected Area 51 and Lockheed’s offices in Burbank. To keep the project secret, workers traveled to Nevada on Monday mornings and returned to California on Friday evenings.
Project OXCART began in August 1959 for studies on radar, aircraft design, and testing for the Lockheed A-12. Groom Lake had limited facilities at the time, including a 5,000-foot (1,500-meter) runway and small hangars. The area was called "Area 51" when construction for the A-12 started in September 1960, including a new 8,500-foot (2,600-meter) runway.
Reynolds Electrical and Engineering Company (REECo) began building "Project 51" on October 1, 1960, with two shifts of workers. They improved the base and built a 10,000-foot (3,000-meter) runway diagonally across the lakebed. They marked a spiral on the lakebed to help pilots avoid landing in sagebrush. Two unpaved runways were also built for crosswind landings.
By August 1961, construction of key facilities was complete. Three Navy hangars were added, and the original U-2 hangars were converted for maintenance. The base had workshops, storage buildings, a commissary, a control tower, a fire station, and housing. The Navy provided 130 surplus housing units. A reservoir pond and recreational areas, like a gym and baseball field, were built. A fuel tank farm was completed by 1962 for the A-12’s special fuel.
Security increased with the arrival of OXCART, and a small mine in the Groom basin was closed. In January 1962, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) expanded the restricted airspace around Groom Lake to 600 square miles (1,600 square kilometers). The CIA received aircraft like F-101 Voodoos, T-33 trainers, and a C-130 Hercules for transport.
The first A-12 test aircraft was secretly transported from Burbank in February 1962 and arrived at Groom Lake on February 28. It made its first flight on April 26, 1962, when the base had over 1,000 workers. Pilots saw the A-12 flying 20 to 30 times above the area. Groom Lake was also the site of the first test flight of the Lockheed D-21 drone in December 1964. By 1963, nine A-12s were at Area 51, operated by the CIA’s "1129th Special Activities Squadron."
After the U-2 incident involving Gary Powers, discussions began about using the A-12 as a drone. Although Kelly Johnson supported drone reconnaissance, he opposed converting the A-12 into a drone, arguing it
Legal status
The United States government has shared very little information about Area 51. The area around Groom Lake is closed to all civilian and regular military aircraft. People must have proper security clearances, and cameras or weapons are not allowed. Even military pilots training nearby risk punishment if they enter the restricted area around Groom Lake. Motion sensors buried underground help monitor the area. Area 51 is a place where Janet Airline, a small group of planes used by the USAF, transports military personnel, mostly from Harry Reid International Airport.
A topographic map from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) shows only the old Groom Mine in the area. However, USGS photos from 1959 and 1968 were publicly available. A map from Nevada’s Department of Transportation shows a large restricted area linked to Nellis Air Force Base. The National Atlas also marks the area as part of Nellis Air Force Base. Other satellite images, including those from Russian providers and IKONOS, show more details like runways, buildings, and vehicles.
In 1998, the USAF officially confirmed the site existed. On June 25, 2013, the CIA released a history of the U-2 and OXCART projects, revealing that the U-2 was tested at Area 51. This came after a Freedom of Information Act request by a researcher in 2005. The report included references to Area 51 and Groom Lake, along with a map. Some media incorrectly claimed this was the first time the government acknowledged Area 51, but it was the first time specific activities at the site were confirmed.
In 1994, five civilian contractors and the families of two deceased contractors sued the USAF and the EPA. They claimed that large amounts of unknown chemicals were burned in open pits at Groom Lake. Tests on the plaintiffs found high levels of harmful chemicals in their bodies, including dioxin, dibenzofuran, and trichloroethylene. They said these chemicals caused health problems and contributed to the deaths of the two contractors.
The lawsuit asked for money to cover injuries and claimed the USAF improperly handled toxic materials. The EPA was accused of failing to enforce environmental laws. The plaintiffs also wanted information about the chemicals to help treat survivors. Congressman Lee Hamilton said the USAF kept information secret to avoid a lawsuit.
The government used the "state secrets privilege" to block sharing classified documents or testimony, claiming it would harm national security. A judge disagreed and allowed the case to proceed. President Bill Clinton then exempted the area near Groom Lake from environmental laws, leading the judge to dismiss the case due to lack of evidence.
The plaintiffs’ lawyer appealed, arguing the government was misusing its power to classify information. The USAF said revealing details about chemicals near Groom Lake could expose military secrets. Courts rejected the appeal, and the Supreme Court did not take the case. The lawsuit ended without a resolution.
Each year, the president renews an exemption for Groom Lake, the only official recognition that it is more than part of Nellis Air Force Base. In 2005, an unclassified memo about handling materials used in the F-117 Nighthawk was posted online. The memo discussed the same chemicals the plaintiffs had requested information about. It was removed after journalists found it.
Civil aviation identification
In December 2007, pilots found that the base had been added to their aircraft navigation systems' most recent Jeppesen database update. The airport was given the ICAO code KXTA and named "Homey Airport." The accidental release of this information led the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) to recommend that student pilots be clearly informed about KXTA. Pilots were advised not to use KXTA as a waypoint or destination for any flight, even though it now appears in public navigation databases.
Security
The perimeter of the base is marked with orange posts and guarded by people in white pickup trucks and camouflage clothing. These guards are sometimes called "camo dudes" by people who are interested in the area. The guards do not talk about who employs them. However, reports from the New York Daily News suggest they may work for a company like AECOM. Signs around the base warn that guards are allowed to use deadly force against people who enter without permission.
Technology is used to help protect the base. This includes cameras and motion sensors. Some motion sensors are placed on public land near the base to alert guards when people approach.
Dwayne A. Day wrote an article in 2006 called "Astronauts and Area 51: the Skylab Incident." The article was based on a memo from 1974 written to the CIA director by an unknown person. The memo said astronauts on the Skylab space station accidentally took pictures of a secret location. The name of the location was hidden, but the writer believed it was Groom Lake. The CIA considered Groom Lake the most important secret site on Earth. At the time, some photos of Groom Lake were kept separate from other photos because not all workers had permission to see them. The memo described a discussion between government groups about whether the photos should be kept secret. The Department of Defense wanted them to stay secret, while NASA and the U.S. State Department did not. The memo also questioned if it was legal to classify photos after they were already public.
The memo included handwritten notes, possibly by the CIA director, William Colby. The notes mentioned that the Secretary of State had raised concerns about the secrecy but left the decision to the CIA director. Colby wrote he had doubts about the need for secrecy.
The declassified documents do not explain what happened next. The debate was not resolved because the photo was later included in a public collection of Skylab images.
On January 28, 2019, a man drove through a security checkpoint near Mercury, Nevada, in an attempt to enter the base. After an 8-mile car chase, the man got out of his vehicle carrying a "cylindrical object" and was shot by security officers and local police after refusing to stop. No other injuries were reported.
UFO and other conspiracy theories
Area 51 is known for being secret and is linked to research on special airplanes. This has led to many modern conspiracy theories. Some ideas involve underground buildings near Groom or at Papoose Lake, also called "S-4 location," which is 8.5 miles (13.7 km) south. These theories include claims of a large underground tunnel system that connects different places across the country, a hidden airstrip called the "Cheshire Airstrip," named after a character from a book by Lewis Carroll, and technology inspired by alien designs.
In the mid-1950s, civilian planes flew below 20,000 feet, while military planes flew up to 40,000 feet. The U-2 aircraft flew higher than 60,000 feet, and there were more reports of UFO sightings. These sightings often happened in the early evening when pilots flying west saw the U-2's silver wings reflect the sunset, making the plane look fiery. Many reports were sent to the Air Force's Project Blue Book, which studied UFO sightings. Project Blue Book checked flight records of the U-2 and later the OXCART to explain many UFO reports from the late 1950s and 1960s. However, the project could not tell people who wrote letters what they had actually seen. Workers on secret projects like OXCART at Area 51 say their work caused many UFO sightings and rumors.
The OXCART had a unique shape, with a wide, disk-like body to hold large amounts of fuel. Pilots flying over Nevada at dusk saw the bottom of the OXCART pass by at over 2,000 mph. The plane's titanium body reflected sunlight so brightly that it could look like a UFO. These workers believe the rumors helped keep Area 51's real activities secret. They also say there is no large underground tunnel system.
On October 14, 1988, a TV show called UFO Coverup? Live introduced the public to the "Majestic 12" hoax, which claimed that Nevada's Area 51 was connected to aliens. In 1989, Bob Lazar said he worked at Area 51's "Sector Four (S-4)," located underground near Papoose Lake. He claimed he worked with alien spacecraft the government had captured. In 1996, a documentary called Dreamland included an interview with a 71-year-old engineer who said he worked at Area 51 in the 1950s. He claimed he helped build a "flying disc simulator" based on a crashed alien craft and worked with an alien named "J-Rod," described as a "telepathic translator." In 2004, Dan Burisch, who used the name Dan Crain, said he worked on cloning alien viruses at Area 51 with "J-Rod." However, Burisch's academic background is debated because he was a Las Vegas parole officer in 1989 while earning a PhD.
In July 2019, over 2,000,000 people responded to a joke idea to "storm" Area 51 posted on Facebook. The event, planned for September 20, 2019, was called "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," with the goal of "seeing aliens." The Air Force said people should avoid entering the area where military training happens. Two music festivals, AlienStock and Storm Area 51 Basecamp, were later held to take advantage of the event's popularity. Between 1,500 and 3,000 people attended the festivals, and over 150 people traveled to the area near Area 51's gates. Seven people were arrested during the event.
In popular culture
Area 51 is famous for its connection to aliens and mysterious stories. Because of this, it is often used as a background and subject in popular culture, especially in science fiction stories about aliens. Some examples of media that feature the facility are: