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Area-51/Groom Lake, Nevada
aka: The Ranch, The Box, Watertown, Dreamland
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GROOM LAKE
A dry pluvial lakebed of parched clay, its alkaline surface smoothed to
glass-like flatness from desert winds sweeping water from winter rains
back and forth in a timeless cycle over a period of fifteen million
years.
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Patch designed by Glenn Campbell |
A desert region sparsely populated with poisonous,
spiny reptiles, insects, plant life, and for a short evolutionary
period, the U-2 Dragon Ladies and the A-12 Archangels of THE
ROADRUNNERS.
Prompted by the Cold War era that began immediately
after World War II, the CIA was given the task of developing strategic
means of determining the military strength of its enemies. Kelly
Johnson, an aircraft design and engineering genius running a special
design team within the Lockheed Aircraft Company called the "Skunk
Works" was asked to design the U-2 to gather intelligence on Soviet
bomber and inter-continental ballistic missile bases in the Soviet
Union.
Seeking a place to test the U-2 in secret far from
the prying eyes of would-be spies and the public, Johnson settled on
Area 51, a remote site in the uninhabitable Nevada desert that had
served the military as a remote place to test weapons for quite some
time. Nellis Air Force Base, a few miles north of 
Las Vegas, and the AEC's (Atomic Energy Commission) Nevada Test
Site (NTS) composed over
1,300 square miles used to set off hundreds of atomic explosions
during the early days of the Cold War. Tony LeVier, the pilot assigned
by Johnson to find a suitable location, found several remote spots, but
chose Groom Lake because of the mountainous perimeter it furnished a dry
lake bed that would provide the ultimate runway. Located within Area
51 of the Nevada Test Site, the base came to be known simply as
"Area 51".
Nuclear tests from the 50's into the 60's caused several evacuations
from Area 51. A bomb with the code-name HOOD, part of the 1957 Operation
Plumbob, caused substantial damage at Watertown, the code-name for Area
51. Construction was completed by July 1955, and on the 24th the first
U-2 prototype arrived from the Lockheed Skunk Works Headquarters in
Burbank, California by a C-124 transport plane. On August 4 the U-2 made
its first flight.
Recognizing the success of testing the U-2 at Area
51, the CIA and the Air Force decided to test all new top-secret
military aircraft at Groom Lake. Under the leadership of Werner Weiss,
grade GS-15 in the CIA, Colonels Holbury and Slip Slater, USAF increased
the size of the facility to accommodate the new Oxcart/A-12 program by
lengthening the runway from 5000 feet to 8500 feet and the restricted
airspace grew to 20 X 22 nautical miles. Surplus World War II Navy
barracks were moved to the
site to furnish billeting for CIA operations. In early 1962 the
first A-12 (CIA code-name for the A-12 plane: Article)
was shipped to Groom Lake. The five specially trained CIA pilots
(CIA code-name: Drivers) arrived soon thereafter. On April 26, 1962, the
first A-12 Archangel, the most revolutionary plane ever, took to the
skies. By the end of 1964 there had been 1,160 flights, totaling 1,616
hours. Eleven aircraft were then available, four of them reserved for
testing and seven assigned to the 1129 Special Activities Squadron
Detachment.
OXCART ARTICLES PARKED AT THE RANCH
SELECTION OF OXCART DRIVERS
Pilots (Drivers) for the A-12 and YF-12
Articles of Project OXCART had to be of quite extraordinary
competence, not only because of the unprecedented
performance of the aircraft itself, but also because of the
particular qualities needed in men who were to fly
intelligence missions. Pilots had to be qualified in the
latest high performance fighters, emotionally stable, and
well motivated. They were to be between 25 and 40 years of
age, and the size of the A-12 cockpit prescribed that they
be under six feet tall and under 175 pounds in weight.
Surviving the screening of Air Force files, psychological
assessments, physical examinations and refinement of
criteria, the pilots were selected to undergo intensive
security and medical scrutiny by the Agency before being
approached to take employment with the Agency on a highly
classified project involving a very advanced aircraft. When
the final screening was complete, the pilots selected from
the program were William L. Skliar, Kenneth S. Collins,
Walter Ray, Alonzo Walter, Mele Vojvodich, Jack W. Weeks,
Ron "Jack" Layton, Dennis B. Sullivan, David P.
Young, Francis Murray, and Russell Scott. In November 1961,
commitments were obtained from the group and arrangements
made with the Air Force to effect appropriate transfers and
assignments to cover their training and to lay the basis for
their transition from military to civilian status.
Compensation and insurance arrangements were similar to
those for the U-2 pilots.
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CIA OXCART PILOTS
OXCART PILOT BIOS
click on links
LOCKHEED TEST PILOT BIOS
click on links
Click on link
Members of the 1129th celebrating the 500th training flight of the
A-12 at Groom Lake
Click on photos for enlarged view
| Agency Pilots and Groom Lake
Brass |
Enlisted Personnel - Groom 1968 |
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Photos courtesy of Frank Murray, Roadrunner Historian
The technical aspect of the CIA's Groom Lake special projects activities
was contracted by various companies and universities who provided
everything from laborers, cooks and maintenance personnel to engineering
and technician specialists in radar tracking, cross-section evaluations
and telemetry.
Pylons with A-12 Articles mounted for RCS (Radar
Cross-Section) Tests
In Summary; the OXCART Program lasted just over ten
years, from its inception in 1957 through first flights in 1962 to
termination in 1968. This CIA program was highly compartmentalized while
at Groom Lake, the players consisting of CIA personnel (the customer),
the Air Force 1129th Special Activities Squadron (support), and various
CIA contractors for special project operations. The main objective of
creating a reconnaissance aircraft of unprecedented speed, range, and
altitude capability had been triumphantly achieved. Lockheed produced 15
OXCARTS, three YF-12A's and 31 SR-71's. The 49 supersonic aircraft
had completed more than 7,300 flights, with 17,000 hours in the air.
Over 2,400 hours had been above Mach 3. Five OXCART were lost in
accidents; two pilots were killed, and two had narrow escapes. In
addition, two F-101 chase planes were lost with their Air Force pilots
during OXCART testing phase.
In a ceremony at Groom Lake on 26 June 1968, Vice
Admiral Rufus L. Taylor, Deputy Director of Central Intelligence,
presented the CIA Intelligence Star for valor to pilots Kenneth S.
Collins, Ronald L. Layton, Francis J. Murray, Dennis B. Sullivan, and
Mele Vojvodich for participation in the 
BLACK SHIELD operation. The posthumous award to pilot Jack W. Weeks
was accepted by his widow. The United States Air Force Legion of Merit
was presented to Colonel Slater and his Deputy, Colonel Maynard N.
Amundson. The Air Force Outstanding Unit Award was presented to the
members of the OXCART Detachment (1129th Special Activities Squadron,
Detachment 1) and the USAF supporting units.
EPILOGUE
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CIA pilots Alonzo Walter, David P. Young,
and Russell Scott left the program prior to Oxcart becoming
operational as Black Shield.
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CIA pilot William L. Skliar pursued the
YF-12 portion of the Oxcart program and did not transfer to
Black Shield for A-12 operations.
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CIA pilot Walter Ray was killed during
testing of the A-12 at Groom Lake
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Groom Lake/a.k.a. Area 51
Links to more photos of Groom Lake and Area 51
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