Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:04,037 --> 00:00:05,772
NARRATOR:
A short flight from Las Vegas,
2
00:00:06,072 --> 00:00:09,609
deep in the Nevada desert,
lies Area 51
3
00:00:10,143 --> 00:00:12,245
the CIA's secret.
4
00:00:12,779 --> 00:00:16,850
A giant clandestine base
that remained unacknowledged
5
00:00:16,916 --> 00:00:18,918
and disavowed by the U.S. government
6
00:00:19,219 --> 00:00:21,187
for almost sixty years.
7
00:00:24,090 --> 00:00:26,292
But in August of 2013,
8
00:00:26,493 --> 00:00:29,796
the CIA finally admits this place is real,
9
00:00:31,131 --> 00:00:35,368
and today, Richard Coe,
a former U.S. Air Force pilot,
10
00:00:35,668 --> 00:00:37,437
is heading straight toward it.
11
00:00:40,306 --> 00:00:41,775
RICHARD "TEX" COE:
They just picked us up back on radar.
12
00:00:41,841 --> 00:00:44,177
They lost us for a little
while because of the terrain.
13
00:00:44,944 --> 00:00:47,280
NARRATOR:
Coe is providing a legal tour
14
00:00:47,347 --> 00:00:49,282
of the perimeter of Area 51,
15
00:00:49,949 --> 00:00:53,086
some of the most
heavily restricted airspace on Earth,
16
00:00:55,255 --> 00:00:57,891
and he's being tracked by the Air Force.
17
00:00:57,957 --> 00:00:59,526
COE: They obviously
want to keep an eye on us,
18
00:00:59,592 --> 00:01:03,329
because anytime civilians are operating
so close to restricted airspace
19
00:01:03,396 --> 00:01:05,932
they prefer to obviously know
where we are, and what our intentions are.
20
00:01:07,067 --> 00:01:08,802
NARRATOR:
Located at Groom Lake,
21
00:01:08,868 --> 00:01:12,072
Area 51 is surrounded by
restricted airspace,
22
00:01:12,372 --> 00:01:14,808
covering 440 square miles.
23
00:01:15,875 --> 00:01:16,976
COE:
But as we get closer and closer,
24
00:01:17,043 --> 00:01:19,112
I anticipate they're gonna get
more and more curious
25
00:01:19,179 --> 00:01:20,413
about what we're doing over there.
26
00:01:21,481 --> 00:01:24,784
NARRATOR:
He's 12 miles out, and at 10,000 feet,
27
00:01:25,652 --> 00:01:29,122
America's heavily guarded
secret base comes into view.
28
00:01:30,523 --> 00:01:32,325
TOWER (over radio):
8, 6, 2 Kilo Juliet say destination.
29
00:01:33,126 --> 00:01:34,694
Are you familiar with restricted airspace?
30
00:01:36,162 --> 00:01:38,865
NARRATOR: Entering any
controlled airspace in the U.S.
31
00:01:38,932 --> 00:01:41,234
post-9/11 is high risk.
32
00:01:41,935 --> 00:01:45,905
But out here, security is tighter than
almost anywhere else in the country.
33
00:01:47,841 --> 00:01:50,910
The box that surrounds
America's top secret base
34
00:01:51,211 --> 00:01:54,147
is designated 4-8-0-8 north.
35
00:01:55,582 --> 00:01:59,252
And the tower now issues
an explicit order
36
00:01:59,486 --> 00:02:01,454
for the pilot to change course.
37
00:02:03,089 --> 00:02:05,592
TOWER (over radio): Skyline 6 Kilo Juliet,
turn North immediately,
38
00:02:05,658 --> 00:02:07,260
sir, for restricted airspace.
39
00:02:17,804 --> 00:02:20,707
NARRATOR: But it's not just
the airspace around Area 51
40
00:02:20,773 --> 00:02:22,108
that's heavily guarded.
41
00:02:25,011 --> 00:02:27,046
Aerospace historian Peter Merlin
42
00:02:27,514 --> 00:02:31,117
has been researching Area 51
for the last 30 years.
43
00:02:33,486 --> 00:02:35,889
PETER MERLIN:
Not just anyone can get into Area 51.
44
00:02:36,222 --> 00:02:38,791
It's surrounded by harsh desert,
45
00:02:39,025 --> 00:02:41,327
but also restricted military land.
46
00:02:41,394 --> 00:02:42,896
There is no fence.
47
00:02:42,962 --> 00:02:45,532
There are just orange posts
marking the border,
48
00:02:46,199 --> 00:02:47,333
and they're hard to see.
49
00:02:49,936 --> 00:02:53,139
NARRATOR: Area 51 is obscured
from the road by mountains,
50
00:02:54,741 --> 00:02:57,110
and is protected by a security cordon
51
00:02:58,178 --> 00:03:00,947
radiating at least ten miles
from the hidden base.
52
00:03:02,815 --> 00:03:04,217
Even on public land,
53
00:03:04,751 --> 00:03:07,187
activity here is monitored
by the military.
54
00:03:10,190 --> 00:03:11,591
MERLIN:
Any vehicles driving down
55
00:03:11,658 --> 00:03:14,761
the Groom Lake road are
detected by magnetic sensors.
56
00:03:17,297 --> 00:03:20,333
Each one sends an electronic
signal to the guard-house,
57
00:03:20,934 --> 00:03:23,570
alerting them so that they
know where you're coming from,
58
00:03:23,870 --> 00:03:26,439
and how fast you're
making progress down the road.
59
00:03:27,840 --> 00:03:29,842
NARRATOR:
13 miles past this point
60
00:03:30,543 --> 00:03:32,545
is one of these security outposts.
61
00:03:35,615 --> 00:03:37,917
MERLIN:
So this is the boundary of Area 51.
62
00:03:39,085 --> 00:03:41,721
We've got security guards
watching us from the hilltop.
63
00:03:42,755 --> 00:03:45,358
Warning signs telling us
not to go any further.
64
00:03:46,392 --> 00:03:49,629
There are orange posts
that mark the boundary itself.
65
00:03:49,696 --> 00:03:54,434
No fences, no gates, and cameras
watching us from the hilltops.
66
00:03:55,268 --> 00:03:56,936
We don't want to cross this line.
67
00:03:57,003 --> 00:03:58,738
If we do, we'll be arrested.
68
00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:03,943
NARRATOR: But according to one
former Area 51 security guard,
69
00:04:04,310 --> 00:04:07,814
trespassers in the past
faced a worse outcome.
70
00:04:09,215 --> 00:04:10,717
FRED DUNHAM:
If they demonstrate
71
00:04:10,783 --> 00:04:13,353
they were going to try to penetrate,
72
00:04:14,053 --> 00:04:18,358
you know, they, they gave me
the all clear to waste 'em.
73
00:04:20,593 --> 00:04:23,496
NARRATOR: But what's going on here
in the Nevada desert?
74
00:04:24,364 --> 00:04:28,401
Why is the U.S. government
trying so hard to keep people out?
75
00:04:31,938 --> 00:04:34,440
Finally, the truth has emerged
76
00:04:34,507 --> 00:04:38,845
in declassified documents
just published in August 2013.
77
00:04:40,146 --> 00:04:42,982
According to a report released by the CIA,
78
00:04:44,484 --> 00:04:48,187
Area 51 was created in 1955
79
00:04:48,254 --> 00:04:49,856
for a single purpose:
80
00:04:50,957 --> 00:04:53,526
to test a top secret aircraft project,
81
00:04:53,893 --> 00:04:55,928
codenamed "Aquatone."
82
00:05:01,267 --> 00:05:04,837
"Aquatone" is the Cold War
codename for the U-2,
83
00:05:05,505 --> 00:05:08,408
an aircraft built to spy
over the Soviet Union
84
00:05:08,775 --> 00:05:11,711
at a time when Soviet premier
Nikita Khrushchev
85
00:05:12,111 --> 00:05:15,515
publicly boasts about his country's
nuclear capability.
86
00:05:19,018 --> 00:05:20,753
TONY BEVACQUA:
They were bragging about their missiles.
87
00:05:20,820 --> 00:05:22,422
They were bragging about their bombers.
88
00:05:22,488 --> 00:05:24,590
They were bragging about this and that,
89
00:05:25,391 --> 00:05:27,827
uh, that got our government's attention.
90
00:05:28,161 --> 00:05:31,497
NARRATOR: In the 1950s,
U.S. reconnaissance aircraft
91
00:05:31,564 --> 00:05:35,001
are vulnerable to Soviet fighters
and surface to air missiles.
92
00:05:39,906 --> 00:05:42,608
Flying spy missions behind enemy lines
93
00:05:42,675 --> 00:05:45,445
in conventional aircraft is too risky,
94
00:05:46,179 --> 00:05:48,514
so the covert "Aquatone" project
95
00:05:48,681 --> 00:05:52,852
is designed to fly outside the range
of Soviet air defenses.
96
00:05:54,687 --> 00:05:57,123
Capable of flying at 70,000 feet,
97
00:05:57,190 --> 00:05:59,258
13 miles above the Earth,
98
00:06:00,293 --> 00:06:03,329
the U-2 has a range of 3,000 miles.
99
00:06:04,864 --> 00:06:07,633
More than enough to operate
behind enemy lines.
100
00:06:09,569 --> 00:06:12,105
BEVACQUA:
I did not know the name of the aircraft,
101
00:06:12,171 --> 00:06:15,875
or what it looked like,
but I knew one thing about it.
102
00:06:16,175 --> 00:06:17,610
It's a high flyer.
103
00:06:18,111 --> 00:06:20,813
NARRATOR: Tony Bevacqua
joins the secret venture
104
00:06:20,880 --> 00:06:23,082
in 1957 as a pilot.
105
00:06:23,816 --> 00:06:27,053
BEVACQUA:
Well, in this locker is a lifesaver
106
00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:28,588
that we wore in the U-2
107
00:06:29,589 --> 00:06:31,290
called the partial pressure suit.
108
00:06:31,591 --> 00:06:33,993
The partial pressure suit kept you alive.
109
00:06:34,127 --> 00:06:36,028
If you lost pressurization,
110
00:06:36,195 --> 00:06:38,865
these outside hoses blow up
111
00:06:38,931 --> 00:06:41,367
and squeeze these even tighter,
112
00:06:41,467 --> 00:06:45,772
and that's what prevents
the blood from boiling.
113
00:06:47,573 --> 00:06:49,509
NARRATOR:
In addition to life support systems,
114
00:06:50,176 --> 00:06:51,711
the CIA's spy plane
115
00:06:52,311 --> 00:06:55,915
carries 700 pounds
of the latest photo imaging equipment.
116
00:06:56,949 --> 00:07:00,787
With this technology,
the U.S. can, in theory,
117
00:07:00,853 --> 00:07:04,724
get its eyes inside the
Soviet Union undetected.
118
00:07:06,192 --> 00:07:08,194
But to test the new reconnaissance jet,
119
00:07:08,327 --> 00:07:10,897
the CIA working with the
U.S. Air Force,
120
00:07:11,130 --> 00:07:13,399
needs a remote location.
121
00:07:13,466 --> 00:07:14,500
MERLIN:
Groom Lake was selected
122
00:07:14,567 --> 00:07:18,271
because it was in a very sparsely
populated area of Nevada.
123
00:07:18,337 --> 00:07:21,407
It looks very much like
what you see behind us.
124
00:07:21,474 --> 00:07:25,077
It's a flat, featureless plain
of hard packed clay.
125
00:07:25,144 --> 00:07:26,979
It can support the weight of any aircraft,
126
00:07:27,046 --> 00:07:29,148
so it's a perfect natural landing field.
127
00:07:30,283 --> 00:07:31,751
NARRATOR:
In 1955,
128
00:07:31,818 --> 00:07:34,720
construction of America's
secret base begins.
129
00:07:35,188 --> 00:07:36,589
MERLIN:
The airfield that emerged
130
00:07:36,656 --> 00:07:38,324
from the primordial lake bed,
131
00:07:38,391 --> 00:07:41,127
began with a 5,000-foot-long runway.
132
00:07:41,761 --> 00:07:44,297
Then they needed hangars,
so three hangars were built,
133
00:07:44,997 --> 00:07:47,066
along with a few warehouses,
134
00:07:47,300 --> 00:07:49,569
administration buildings, a chow hall,
135
00:07:49,635 --> 00:07:51,671
and rudimentary accommodations
for the workers,
136
00:07:51,737 --> 00:07:53,806
consisting of, essentially,
a trailer park.
137
00:07:54,707 --> 00:07:56,642
NARRATOR:
Named after a simple grid reference
138
00:07:56,709 --> 00:07:58,711
on an atomic energy commission map,
139
00:07:59,412 --> 00:08:01,247
the newly created Area 51
140
00:08:01,914 --> 00:08:04,116
is seen here in a 3D rendering
141
00:08:04,183 --> 00:08:06,719
of the earliest known
high-altitude photograph
142
00:08:07,286 --> 00:08:10,423
that shows the layout of
the CIA's top secret base...
143
00:08:12,558 --> 00:08:17,163
the place where Tony Bevacqua
arrives to work on the U-2.
144
00:08:19,565 --> 00:08:21,634
BEVACQUA:
When I got off there at Groom Lake,
145
00:08:21,901 --> 00:08:24,570
I see a runway, a little tower,
146
00:08:25,238 --> 00:08:26,372
a couple hangars,
147
00:08:26,439 --> 00:08:29,108
a community center-type, uh, building.
148
00:08:29,876 --> 00:08:31,277
We slept in trailers,
149
00:08:32,011 --> 00:08:35,248
and, uh, there were
two or three of us in each one.
150
00:08:36,015 --> 00:08:37,950
No TV, no radio.
151
00:08:38,818 --> 00:08:40,152
It was pretty sparse.
152
00:08:41,354 --> 00:08:43,489
NARRATOR:
Given the secrecy of the CIA project,
153
00:08:44,090 --> 00:08:46,692
all of the people
selected to work at Area 51
154
00:08:47,326 --> 00:08:49,262
are subject to intense scrutiny.
155
00:08:50,162 --> 00:08:52,298
BEVACQUA:
Security there was absolutely
156
00:08:52,899 --> 00:08:55,167
very tight. Very tight.
157
00:08:55,601 --> 00:08:58,871
Being informed on what
you can talk about or not talk about
158
00:08:59,438 --> 00:09:01,607
starts right at the very beginning.
159
00:09:01,807 --> 00:09:02,875
It's just that way.
160
00:09:02,942 --> 00:09:06,012
You don't talk about
anything that's classified.
161
00:09:07,146 --> 00:09:08,481
NARRATOR:
To ensure secrecy,
162
00:09:08,681 --> 00:09:11,784
and to protect the real purpose
of the U-2 spy plane,
163
00:09:12,618 --> 00:09:14,554
the CIA creates a cover story.
164
00:09:16,889 --> 00:09:19,392
It announces that the high-flying U-2
165
00:09:19,458 --> 00:09:21,894
is going to be flown out of a place called
166
00:09:21,961 --> 00:09:23,763
"Watertown Strip, Nevada"
167
00:09:24,196 --> 00:09:26,399
on weather observation missions.
168
00:09:30,102 --> 00:09:33,973
But in the late 1950s,
CIA documents confirm
169
00:09:34,206 --> 00:09:37,176
that U-2 operations at Area 51
170
00:09:37,843 --> 00:09:41,080
are disrupted by another top secret
government program.
171
00:09:45,284 --> 00:09:47,620
On the edge of the Nevada testing range,
172
00:09:47,720 --> 00:09:50,189
the home of America's nuclear program,
173
00:09:50,823 --> 00:09:55,795
Area 51 lies downwind
of radioactive fallout.
174
00:09:59,465 --> 00:10:01,867
JULES KABAT: One of the things
that started bothering me
175
00:10:01,934 --> 00:10:03,269
about working up there
176
00:10:03,803 --> 00:10:06,772
is that it's directly northeast
of weapons test.
177
00:10:07,707 --> 00:10:11,210
The prevailing winds
in Las Vegas are from the southwest,
178
00:10:11,277 --> 00:10:14,313
and when they were doing
above-ground testing,
179
00:10:14,513 --> 00:10:17,116
all this radioactive dust
would fly into the air,
180
00:10:17,183 --> 00:10:19,218
and of course there was
plenty to worry about
181
00:10:19,385 --> 00:10:20,586
due to fallout.
182
00:10:21,988 --> 00:10:23,756
NARRATOR:
For more than two years,
183
00:10:23,823 --> 00:10:26,292
as America tests nuclear warheads,
184
00:10:26,592 --> 00:10:28,728
just 30 miles to the southwest,
185
00:10:29,462 --> 00:10:31,897
the CIA's secret airstrip in Nevada
186
00:10:31,964 --> 00:10:34,100
remains largely unoccupied,
187
00:10:34,867 --> 00:10:37,103
too dangerous due to nuclear fallout.
188
00:10:38,037 --> 00:10:40,439
But despite the interruptions at the base,
189
00:10:40,973 --> 00:10:43,175
the CIA starts a new project:
190
00:10:43,809 --> 00:10:47,580
one that will define
the future of Area 51.
191
00:10:50,816 --> 00:10:53,452
NARRATOR:
Today, America's stealth aircraft
192
00:10:53,519 --> 00:10:57,356
have a reputation for near
invisibility to enemy radar.
193
00:10:58,724 --> 00:11:00,559
But back in the late '50s,
194
00:11:00,626 --> 00:11:02,561
the only way to achieve stealth
195
00:11:02,862 --> 00:11:05,264
is flying at extreme altitude.
196
00:11:06,432 --> 00:11:10,169
King of these birds is the CIA's U-2.
197
00:11:12,471 --> 00:11:15,174
But on May 1st, 1960,
198
00:11:15,341 --> 00:11:17,343
America's top secret spying mission
199
00:11:17,410 --> 00:11:19,245
over the Soviet Union is blown
200
00:11:19,912 --> 00:11:22,281
when a USSR surface to air missile
201
00:11:22,348 --> 00:11:24,183
downs a high-flying U-2
202
00:11:25,051 --> 00:11:27,453
piloted by Francis Gary Powers.
203
00:11:30,423 --> 00:11:34,093
We now know that the CIA
predicted this might happen.
204
00:11:35,161 --> 00:11:37,096
MERLIN:
The CIA knew that Soviet
205
00:11:37,163 --> 00:11:39,665
surface to air missile technology
was going to catch up
206
00:11:39,732 --> 00:11:42,501
to the point where it could shoot down
a high flyer like the U-2.
207
00:11:44,303 --> 00:11:46,472
It was no longer enough to
have an airplane
208
00:11:46,539 --> 00:11:49,308
that could just fly several times
the height of a normal airplane.
209
00:11:50,109 --> 00:11:51,944
NARRATOR:
A CIA stealth program,
210
00:11:52,144 --> 00:11:54,346
codenamed "Project Rainbow,"
211
00:11:54,780 --> 00:11:57,283
is green-lit to camouflage the U-2.
212
00:11:58,918 --> 00:12:00,386
MERLIN:
In an effort to make the U-2
213
00:12:00,453 --> 00:12:02,121
less vulnerable to Soviet radar,
214
00:12:02,455 --> 00:12:04,023
the test team at Area 51
215
00:12:04,490 --> 00:12:06,759
applied a layer of
radar absorbent material
216
00:12:06,826 --> 00:12:09,095
to the fuselage of the U-2 prototype.
217
00:12:10,830 --> 00:12:13,799
It consisted of a conductive grid pattern
218
00:12:14,166 --> 00:12:15,735
on a flexible sheet,
219
00:12:16,702 --> 00:12:19,105
which was attached
to a layer of honeycomb
220
00:12:20,039 --> 00:12:23,008
glued to the surface of
the aircraft's skin.
221
00:12:23,075 --> 00:12:26,645
The grid pattern earned the material
the nickname "wallpaper."
222
00:12:27,580 --> 00:12:30,950
NARRATOR: But adding "wallpaper"
adds weight to the aircraft,
223
00:12:31,083 --> 00:12:33,552
and reduces its ability to fly high,
224
00:12:34,019 --> 00:12:36,756
making it more vulnerable
to Soviet defenses.
225
00:12:38,691 --> 00:12:41,160
MERLIN: Because the "wallpaper"
was not a huge success,
226
00:12:42,128 --> 00:12:43,929
the CIA began looking into the idea
227
00:12:43,996 --> 00:12:45,831
of a successor to the U-2.
228
00:12:45,898 --> 00:12:48,834
An airplane that would
be able to fly higher and faster,
229
00:12:49,135 --> 00:12:50,770
and be less visible to radar.
230
00:12:52,204 --> 00:12:53,572
NARRATOR:
Unlike the U-2,
231
00:12:53,839 --> 00:12:56,008
the CIA's next aircraft project,
232
00:12:56,242 --> 00:12:57,777
codenamed "Oxcart,"
233
00:12:57,843 --> 00:13:01,580
has stealthy capabilities
engineered into it from day one.
234
00:13:03,749 --> 00:13:06,685
PETER LAW: They told us that
this program was so classified
235
00:13:07,153 --> 00:13:09,388
that the documents weren't even marked,
236
00:13:09,989 --> 00:13:12,324
because if somebody accidentally
237
00:13:12,758 --> 00:13:14,593
had a folder that blew out of their hands
238
00:13:14,660 --> 00:13:16,862
and the papers went
blowing down the street,
239
00:13:17,163 --> 00:13:20,032
that if it said "secret" on it,
everybody'd wanna know what it was.
240
00:13:20,099 --> 00:13:22,234
But if it didn't have
any markings whatsoever,
241
00:13:22,601 --> 00:13:23,869
the people would just sweep it up
242
00:13:23,936 --> 00:13:25,004
and throw it into a trash can,
243
00:13:25,070 --> 00:13:27,306
and not worry about the fact
that it was classified.
244
00:13:28,741 --> 00:13:32,545
NARRATOR: Details of this CIA operation
were top secret for decades.
245
00:13:33,779 --> 00:13:37,116
But now, with the recent
release of CIA documents,
246
00:13:37,750 --> 00:13:41,687
it's okay for men who worked
on the so-called Oxcart program
247
00:13:42,054 --> 00:13:45,758
to reveal some of their
experiences at Area 51.
248
00:13:47,927 --> 00:13:50,996
One of them is Thornton TD Barnes.
249
00:13:51,797 --> 00:13:54,800
THORNTON TD BARNES: It took me 3 months
to be cleared for the project.
250
00:13:55,100 --> 00:13:56,535
At that particular time,
251
00:13:56,769 --> 00:13:59,672
Oxcart was the most important thing
the United States was doing.
252
00:13:59,738 --> 00:14:01,507
We were developing the stealth plane,
253
00:14:01,974 --> 00:14:03,642
something no one else
had been able to do.
254
00:14:04,009 --> 00:14:06,245
They told us "we do not
want you to record it."
255
00:14:06,612 --> 00:14:09,148
"Do not talk about it. It doesn't exist."
256
00:14:10,783 --> 00:14:12,618
NARRATOR:
Secrecy is all-important,
257
00:14:12,918 --> 00:14:15,120
because Project Oxcart's new jet,
258
00:14:15,487 --> 00:14:16,722
called the A-12,
259
00:14:16,956 --> 00:14:19,625
is equipped with
state-of-the-art materials
260
00:14:19,959 --> 00:14:22,161
to reduce its visibility to radar.
261
00:14:25,531 --> 00:14:29,235
LAW: A-12 was the
best aircraft ever built,
262
00:14:29,668 --> 00:14:31,937
and it was so far ahead of anything else
263
00:14:32,004 --> 00:14:33,639
that people had on the boards.
264
00:14:35,407 --> 00:14:38,277
NARRATOR:
Designed to fly at 90,000 feet,
265
00:14:38,544 --> 00:14:41,180
and at speeds faster than
a speeding bullet,
266
00:14:41,547 --> 00:14:43,983
the CIA's A-12 spy-plane
267
00:14:44,283 --> 00:14:46,452
is built to withstand temperatures
268
00:14:46,518 --> 00:14:48,954
hundreds of degrees greater than the U-2.
269
00:14:51,857 --> 00:14:55,327
Peter Law, a thermodynamic
engineer at Lockheed,
270
00:14:55,794 --> 00:14:57,763
worked on the high-flying aircraft
271
00:14:57,830 --> 00:15:00,532
at the company's legendary
Skunk Works factory
272
00:15:00,699 --> 00:15:02,268
in Burbank, California.
273
00:15:03,335 --> 00:15:05,371
LAW: When you're
flying the speed of the U-2,
274
00:15:05,938 --> 00:15:07,006
everything's too cold.
275
00:15:07,072 --> 00:15:08,807
Now, when you fly the speed of the A-12,
276
00:15:09,375 --> 00:15:10,743
now it's too hot.
277
00:15:11,977 --> 00:15:14,713
NARRATOR: The only metal
light enough and strong enough
278
00:15:14,780 --> 00:15:16,448
to withstand the high temperatures
279
00:15:16,515 --> 00:15:20,319
Lockheed's A-12
is exposed to is titanium--
280
00:15:20,786 --> 00:15:23,022
in short supply in the United States.
281
00:15:24,290 --> 00:15:26,191
Ironically, back then,
282
00:15:26,525 --> 00:15:29,295
the Soviet Union
is the only reliable place
283
00:15:29,361 --> 00:15:31,430
to source the titanium they need.
284
00:15:32,431 --> 00:15:35,567
So the CIA creates a series
of dummy companies
285
00:15:35,668 --> 00:15:39,371
to buy the material directly
from its Cold War enemy.
286
00:15:42,007 --> 00:15:43,709
LAW:
Russia supplied the titanium
287
00:15:44,009 --> 00:15:45,411
that made the A-12s.
288
00:15:45,477 --> 00:15:47,012
Of course, they didn't know that.
289
00:15:47,079 --> 00:15:49,815
That was another amazing thing
for us as engineers. Wow.
290
00:15:50,349 --> 00:15:52,718
We're making something
out of their material
291
00:15:52,785 --> 00:15:54,987
to go take pictures over their country,
292
00:15:55,220 --> 00:15:57,289
and, uh, they probably wouldn't have been
293
00:15:57,356 --> 00:16:01,093
too eager to sell us that titanium
if they knew where it was going.
294
00:16:02,628 --> 00:16:04,863
NARRATOR:
Lockheed engineers design the A-12
295
00:16:04,930 --> 00:16:06,966
to be difficult to spot on radar,
296
00:16:07,599 --> 00:16:11,870
but to test it out, they need to
evaluate its radar cross section.
297
00:16:14,940 --> 00:16:17,509
MERLIN: Radar cross section
is the key to stealth.
298
00:16:17,676 --> 00:16:21,347
An airplane presents a
certain signature to the radar,
299
00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:23,782
depending on how reflective it is.
300
00:16:24,183 --> 00:16:25,584
You could have a small aircraft
301
00:16:25,651 --> 00:16:28,320
that's extremely reflective,
and looks large on radar,
302
00:16:28,387 --> 00:16:31,523
or a large aircraft that's
not particularly reflective,
303
00:16:31,590 --> 00:16:33,659
that looks relatively small on radar.
304
00:16:33,726 --> 00:16:36,328
The key to stealth is
making the radar signature
305
00:16:36,395 --> 00:16:37,963
as small as possible.
306
00:16:39,031 --> 00:16:42,701
NARRATOR: At Area 51,
the radar signature of an aircraft
307
00:16:42,768 --> 00:16:44,470
is evaluated on a pylon,
308
00:16:45,104 --> 00:16:47,373
affectionately called "the pole,"
309
00:16:48,640 --> 00:16:50,409
a covert facility situated
310
00:16:50,476 --> 00:16:53,379
at the northeast end
of the Area 51 complex.
311
00:16:56,181 --> 00:16:58,417
On the top of this sixty-foot structure,
312
00:16:58,717 --> 00:17:01,220
a full-scale model of the A-12
313
00:17:01,553 --> 00:17:04,590
is subjected to 18 months of testing.
314
00:17:08,293 --> 00:17:09,728
BARNES:
We had all these radar...
315
00:17:10,162 --> 00:17:12,097
Every radar known to man at the time
316
00:17:12,531 --> 00:17:14,867
looking at the object we had on the pole,
317
00:17:14,933 --> 00:17:17,870
and we would could record the returns
318
00:17:18,203 --> 00:17:20,005
of the pattern or the signature.
319
00:17:20,406 --> 00:17:22,608
We'd get the reflections
off of that object,
320
00:17:23,075 --> 00:17:25,010
and we could rotate it.
We could tilt it,
321
00:17:25,577 --> 00:17:27,713
and that's what we were doing
to develop stealth.
322
00:17:29,281 --> 00:17:32,284
NARRATOR: Even for those
cleared to work on the A-12 project,
323
00:17:32,818 --> 00:17:35,687
access to the radar facilities at Area 51
324
00:17:36,355 --> 00:17:38,624
is strictly on a need-to-know basis.
325
00:17:40,292 --> 00:17:42,661
BARNES:
People were not allowed in my building
326
00:17:42,728 --> 00:17:46,331
because we were doing things there
that they had no need to know.
327
00:17:47,566 --> 00:17:50,903
LAW:
I didn't have the level of clearance
328
00:17:50,969 --> 00:17:54,973
that the people needed
to be able to deal with signatures.
329
00:17:55,040 --> 00:17:56,842
That was the highest level of security,
330
00:17:57,476 --> 00:17:59,478
and they didn't ask me about
the thermal part of it.
331
00:17:59,545 --> 00:18:01,180
Even though they needed to know an answer,
332
00:18:01,246 --> 00:18:03,215
I didn't have a need to know
that they existed.
333
00:18:03,449 --> 00:18:05,417
That's how compartmented things were.
334
00:18:05,818 --> 00:18:07,786
BARNES: It was a culture,
and we thought nothing of it.
335
00:18:07,853 --> 00:18:08,987
You just didn't ask.
336
00:18:10,155 --> 00:18:13,525
NARRATOR: To support the
CIA's top secret Oxcart project,
337
00:18:13,592 --> 00:18:16,128
the development of its A-12 spy-plane,
338
00:18:16,662 --> 00:18:19,364
Area 51 needs some major changes.
339
00:18:21,133 --> 00:18:23,702
MERLIN: The CIA decided to
invest a great deal of money
340
00:18:23,769 --> 00:18:25,204
to build up the base.
341
00:18:25,571 --> 00:18:28,474
That included adding a brand new runway,
342
00:18:28,674 --> 00:18:31,143
8,500 feet long, made of concrete,
343
00:18:31,577 --> 00:18:34,546
with a 6,000 foot extension
onto the lake bed.
344
00:18:35,080 --> 00:18:37,549
NARRATOR: In addition,
three new hangars are built
345
00:18:37,616 --> 00:18:39,218
on the north side of the base.
346
00:18:41,420 --> 00:18:45,257
These are designated
hangar 4, 5 and 6.
347
00:18:45,324 --> 00:18:47,526
MERLIN:
The A-12, Project Oxcart,
348
00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:51,430
turned Area 51, which was essentially
a temporary facility,
349
00:18:51,497 --> 00:18:53,232
into a permanent one.
350
00:18:54,166 --> 00:18:56,268
NARRATOR:
By February 1962,
351
00:18:56,835 --> 00:18:59,037
Area 51 is now equipped to deal with
352
00:18:59,104 --> 00:19:01,073
a working prototype of the A-12,
353
00:19:01,840 --> 00:19:05,043
but first,
the secret plane has to get there.
354
00:19:07,179 --> 00:19:11,150
The aircraft can't fly until
it's been tested at Area 51,
355
00:19:11,850 --> 00:19:14,786
so Lockheed and the CIA
have to figure out
356
00:19:14,853 --> 00:19:17,256
how to move it over 300 miles
357
00:19:17,556 --> 00:19:19,625
from the factory in Burbank, California
358
00:19:20,225 --> 00:19:22,494
to Area 51 in Nevada.
359
00:19:25,063 --> 00:19:28,800
And they have to keep it a secret.
360
00:19:30,869 --> 00:19:33,138
TOM STANKS: They put it
in what they call a box.
361
00:19:33,238 --> 00:19:37,809
105 feet long and 35 feet wide.
362
00:19:38,143 --> 00:19:40,712
And they had the aircraft inside of it.
363
00:19:41,580 --> 00:19:44,616
NARRATOR:
Area 51 security guard Tom Stanks
364
00:19:44,683 --> 00:19:47,920
joins the convoy of
California Highway Patrol
365
00:19:47,986 --> 00:19:49,688
and CIA operatives
366
00:19:49,755 --> 00:19:51,456
who accompany the aircraft,
367
00:19:51,757 --> 00:19:54,259
as these remarkable photographs show,
368
00:19:54,526 --> 00:19:57,629
widening the road, cutting down trees,
369
00:19:57,696 --> 00:20:01,900
and removing signposts,
so the enormous truck can pass.
370
00:20:04,002 --> 00:20:06,271
STANKS: We always parked
in an area that was remote
371
00:20:06,338 --> 00:20:07,573
on the sides of the roads.
372
00:20:07,639 --> 00:20:10,075
The times that we stopped overnight
373
00:20:10,142 --> 00:20:12,044
is when the questions would be asked.
374
00:20:12,211 --> 00:20:15,180
I know at one time we had
two children on bikes,
375
00:20:15,547 --> 00:20:16,748
and they said, "What have
you got in that thing?"
376
00:20:16,815 --> 00:20:19,451
I said, "Flying saucer."
(laughs)
377
00:20:19,518 --> 00:20:21,253
They said, "Yeah?"
I said, "Yeah, that's right.
378
00:20:21,320 --> 00:20:23,121
Flying saucer."
And, "I don't believe you."
379
00:20:23,188 --> 00:20:26,758
I said, "Well, maybe it's not."
(laughs)
380
00:20:28,794 --> 00:20:31,763
NARRATOR: In total,
eighteen convoys are needed
381
00:20:31,830 --> 00:20:35,400
to deliver the CIA's A-12s
to the test site.
382
00:20:38,403 --> 00:20:42,608
Tom Stanks is no longer
cleared for access to Area 51,
383
00:20:43,175 --> 00:20:46,445
so today, this is as far
as he can take us.
384
00:20:46,778 --> 00:20:48,146
STANKS:
Well, here we are.
385
00:20:48,780 --> 00:20:50,215
We made it three days
386
00:20:50,582 --> 00:20:52,584
from Burbank, California to here.
387
00:20:52,784 --> 00:20:54,987
This is where the Nevada test site is,
388
00:20:55,287 --> 00:20:56,989
and not too far down the road
389
00:20:57,155 --> 00:21:00,092
is where the
Nevada Highway Patrol leaves us,
390
00:21:00,559 --> 00:21:03,028
and the Mercury patrol catches us,
391
00:21:03,328 --> 00:21:05,631
and they take us to the Area 51 test site.
392
00:21:06,231 --> 00:21:08,000
NARRATOR:
60 years ago,
393
00:21:08,066 --> 00:21:10,435
57 miles down this road,
394
00:21:11,470 --> 00:21:15,674
the CIA's top secret aircraft
arrives at Area 51,
395
00:21:17,109 --> 00:21:19,411
and so begins a new chapter
396
00:21:19,478 --> 00:21:21,680
in the development of stealth.
397
00:21:23,415 --> 00:21:25,617
NARRATOR:
By early 1960,
398
00:21:25,684 --> 00:21:28,420
America is playing technological catch-up
399
00:21:28,487 --> 00:21:30,922
with its archenemy, the Soviet Union.
400
00:21:33,191 --> 00:21:36,962
Intelligence gathering is
the new battleground of the Cold War,
401
00:21:38,363 --> 00:21:40,198
and over 50 years later,
402
00:21:41,266 --> 00:21:42,634
documents now reveal
403
00:21:42,701 --> 00:21:46,371
that the Central Intelligence Agency
at Area 51
404
00:21:47,139 --> 00:21:51,376
goes to extreme lengths to
keep its A-12 airplane project,
405
00:21:51,443 --> 00:21:54,212
codenamed "Oxcart," under wraps.
406
00:21:57,649 --> 00:22:00,986
In 1962, Las Vegas resident Tom Stanks
407
00:22:01,286 --> 00:22:03,689
works as a security guard
at the test site.
408
00:22:06,024 --> 00:22:10,095
His job: to make sure that only those
with the right credentials
409
00:22:10,228 --> 00:22:11,963
get access to the base.
410
00:22:13,365 --> 00:22:14,833
STANKS:
They had the planes coming in
411
00:22:14,900 --> 00:22:17,202
in the morning and leaving
in the afternoon.
412
00:22:17,502 --> 00:22:20,772
And just like any airport or airline,
413
00:22:21,173 --> 00:22:22,607
everyone had a badge.
414
00:22:23,108 --> 00:22:25,010
KABAT: They took
the badge away from you
415
00:22:25,277 --> 00:22:26,912
so it couldn't be tampered with,
416
00:22:27,279 --> 00:22:28,814
and when you came back the next day,
417
00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:31,083
they would match the badge to your face.
418
00:22:31,850 --> 00:22:34,386
I remember guards
being very fussy about
419
00:22:34,686 --> 00:22:36,688
taking it away from you before you left,
420
00:22:37,022 --> 00:22:40,359
giving it back to you,
comparing it every time.
421
00:22:41,927 --> 00:22:44,029
NARRATOR:
Jules Kabat is just 22
422
00:22:44,096 --> 00:22:46,865
when he is recruited to work at Area 51.
423
00:22:48,066 --> 00:22:51,470
Like everyone employed to
work on special projects at the base,
424
00:22:51,937 --> 00:22:53,905
he needs to be cleared for access,
425
00:22:54,306 --> 00:22:56,842
a process that takes months to complete.
426
00:22:57,209 --> 00:23:00,078
KABAT: Because they didn't have much
in the way of computers back then,
427
00:23:00,379 --> 00:23:02,848
they had to do it the old fashioned way,
with legwork.
428
00:23:03,348 --> 00:23:06,017
So, I remember neighbors,
429
00:23:06,785 --> 00:23:10,055
friends saying they were
visited by the FBI,
430
00:23:10,122 --> 00:23:11,523
or some other agency,
431
00:23:11,590 --> 00:23:15,160
to see whether or not
I was a foreign agent.
432
00:23:17,028 --> 00:23:19,131
NARRATOR:
The need for this intense security
433
00:23:19,197 --> 00:23:21,299
is driven by one factor.
434
00:23:23,735 --> 00:23:26,671
Declassified documents
released by the CIA
435
00:23:27,305 --> 00:23:29,441
show that in the early 1960s,
436
00:23:29,741 --> 00:23:34,846
Area 51 is focused on getting its A-12
stealth plane project,
437
00:23:34,913 --> 00:23:36,648
codenamed "Oxcart,"
438
00:23:36,715 --> 00:23:39,818
out of development and into operation...
439
00:23:40,719 --> 00:23:45,490
a project so sensitive that
even the aircraft have code names.
440
00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:51,296
BARNES:
We didn't call the planes "planes."
441
00:23:51,363 --> 00:23:52,397
We called them "articles."
442
00:23:52,497 --> 00:23:54,900
That was the terminology
that we used for 'em.
443
00:23:55,300 --> 00:23:57,002
Each had a different article number.
444
00:23:57,636 --> 00:23:59,504
The first one was article 121.
445
00:23:59,805 --> 00:24:02,774
,We had article 127, 131.
Different article numbers.
446
00:24:03,675 --> 00:24:06,011
NARRATOR:
At every level, the A-12 program
447
00:24:06,077 --> 00:24:09,047
is protected by acronyms
and misinformation.
448
00:24:10,749 --> 00:24:13,185
Even the identity of the A-12 pilots.
449
00:24:13,385 --> 00:24:15,487
BARNES:
They had pseudo names entirely.
450
00:24:15,554 --> 00:24:17,222
They did not use their real names.
451
00:24:17,289 --> 00:24:20,425
The CIA got the names off
of gravestones in Europe,
452
00:24:20,959 --> 00:24:22,494
and assigned them to the pilots.
453
00:24:23,995 --> 00:24:26,364
NARRATOR: But Oxcart's
need to know security
454
00:24:26,698 --> 00:24:29,668
means even the "drivers"
as the pilots are called,
455
00:24:30,268 --> 00:24:32,103
are not cleared to know everything.
456
00:24:32,637 --> 00:24:35,140
BARNES: The pilot did not even know
what his mission was.
457
00:24:35,207 --> 00:24:38,076
All he knew is at a certain point
458
00:24:38,143 --> 00:24:41,313
along this flight,
he has flipped this switch,
459
00:24:41,379 --> 00:24:43,315
make this turn to this angle,
460
00:24:44,182 --> 00:24:46,685
go so long, turn here, turn here,
461
00:24:47,252 --> 00:24:49,654
come home, and not say anything about it.
462
00:24:50,555 --> 00:24:52,324
NARRATOR:
These precautions are necessary.
463
00:24:52,824 --> 00:24:56,761
By the 1960s, the Soviet Union
has leapfrogged the U.S.
464
00:24:56,828 --> 00:25:00,265
in the Cold War battle
for military espionage.
465
00:25:03,101 --> 00:25:04,569
In 1957,
466
00:25:04,836 --> 00:25:07,572
the Soviet Union launches Sputnik One,
467
00:25:07,839 --> 00:25:10,008
becoming the first nation on Earth
468
00:25:10,075 --> 00:25:12,744
to put a man-made object in space.
469
00:25:13,945 --> 00:25:14,980
(beeping)
470
00:25:15,046 --> 00:25:16,214
ANNOUNCER:
Until two days ago,
471
00:25:16,281 --> 00:25:18,783
that sound had never
been heard on this Earth.
472
00:25:19,084 --> 00:25:21,920
Suddenly, it has become as much
a part of 20th century life
473
00:25:21,987 --> 00:25:24,222
as the whir of your vacuum cleaner.
474
00:25:24,890 --> 00:25:27,392
NARRATOR:
The world's first artificial satellite
475
00:25:27,726 --> 00:25:31,229
is an aluminum sphere
about the size of a beach ball.
476
00:25:31,897 --> 00:25:35,166
Inside, a battery pack and basic radio
477
00:25:35,233 --> 00:25:37,302
sends out a repeating pulse.
478
00:25:38,904 --> 00:25:41,473
But although it doesn't
actually do very much,
479
00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:43,808
it catches the world's attention,
480
00:25:43,875 --> 00:25:46,278
and America, off-guard.
481
00:25:46,778 --> 00:25:48,480
BARNES:
When Sputnik launched,
482
00:25:48,813 --> 00:25:50,582
we heard that little satellite going over.
483
00:25:50,649 --> 00:25:52,083
"Beep, beep, beep, beep."
484
00:25:52,150 --> 00:25:55,153
We realized we've got a problem.
They're ahead of us.
485
00:25:55,520 --> 00:25:57,088
We didn't know how far ahead.
486
00:25:57,856 --> 00:25:59,624
NARRATOR:
In the years that follow,
487
00:25:59,691 --> 00:26:03,261
the Soviets launch more and more
sophisticated satellites,
488
00:26:04,229 --> 00:26:06,731
many of them flying
over the United States,
489
00:26:06,898 --> 00:26:09,935
and worryingly for those
on the Oxcart program,
490
00:26:10,435 --> 00:26:12,637
photographing Area 51.
491
00:26:15,774 --> 00:26:19,044
BARNES: We had the A-12 prototype
on the pole for 18 months.
492
00:26:19,644 --> 00:26:21,179
But every time a satellite
would come over,
493
00:26:21,246 --> 00:26:23,014
we knew that morning
494
00:26:23,081 --> 00:26:25,483
what time it would be
coming over the horizon.
495
00:26:25,650 --> 00:26:27,485
Our intelligence was that good,
496
00:26:27,886 --> 00:26:29,854
and we would have to take it off the pole
497
00:26:30,121 --> 00:26:32,958
and run it into a building
until the satellite passed.
498
00:26:33,592 --> 00:26:36,728
NARRATOR: But even these precautions
have their limitations.
499
00:26:38,330 --> 00:26:41,499
BARNES: Ironically,
we learned many, many years later
500
00:26:41,900 --> 00:26:44,836
that they had gotten the shape of the A-12
501
00:26:44,903 --> 00:26:47,973
from the shadow,
because the ground was cooler
502
00:26:48,306 --> 00:26:49,674
underneath it.
503
00:26:49,741 --> 00:26:52,110
We'd moved the plane;
it was gone,
504
00:26:52,177 --> 00:26:54,879
but they could tell that
it had been sitting there
505
00:26:54,946 --> 00:26:56,848
because of the difference in the heat.
506
00:26:57,816 --> 00:26:59,918
NARRATOR:
By the late 1960's,
507
00:26:59,985 --> 00:27:02,721
Soviet satellites aren't the only things
508
00:27:02,787 --> 00:27:07,025
adding new impetus to technology
development at Area 51.
509
00:27:09,628 --> 00:27:11,997
The Vietnam War is in full swing,
510
00:27:12,197 --> 00:27:14,332
and for American fighters,
511
00:27:14,399 --> 00:27:16,568
the Soviet-built MiG aircraft
512
00:27:16,768 --> 00:27:18,570
is proving to be a real handful.
513
00:27:21,006 --> 00:27:23,408
BARNES: We knew the Russians
had come up with something
514
00:27:23,842 --> 00:27:25,176
that was great.
515
00:27:25,243 --> 00:27:26,978
It's, it's whacking us. This--
516
00:27:27,045 --> 00:27:28,480
It's knocking our pilots out of the sky.
517
00:27:28,546 --> 00:27:30,048
We thought it was a super plane.
518
00:27:32,417 --> 00:27:34,719
NARRATOR:
Now, the CIA dossier
519
00:27:34,786 --> 00:27:36,655
published in August 2013,
520
00:27:37,222 --> 00:27:40,458
lifts the lid on an Area 51 project
521
00:27:40,692 --> 00:27:44,129
that's been hidden from the public
for the last fifty years.
522
00:27:45,897 --> 00:27:48,133
NARRATOR:
Declassified CIA documents
523
00:27:48,633 --> 00:27:50,835
contain a previously censored history
524
00:27:50,902 --> 00:27:53,905
of why and how Area 51
525
00:27:54,572 --> 00:27:56,541
grew out of the Nevada desert,
526
00:27:56,808 --> 00:27:59,611
and reveal a revolving picture
of the nature of the work
527
00:27:59,678 --> 00:28:00,879
carried out there.
528
00:28:00,945 --> 00:28:03,481
BARNES:
Area 51 is not really an airbase.
529
00:28:03,548 --> 00:28:06,184
It's a laboratory.
It's a technological laboratory.
530
00:28:07,152 --> 00:28:10,355
It's where we were
exploiting enemy technology,
531
00:28:10,989 --> 00:28:13,925
and analyzing the
capabilities of Soviet Union.
532
00:28:15,493 --> 00:28:17,062
NARRATOR:
In 1968,
533
00:28:17,128 --> 00:28:20,799
this "laboratory" becomes
America's base of operations
534
00:28:20,865 --> 00:28:22,834
for a major new initiative:
535
00:28:23,268 --> 00:28:26,471
to test and evaluate
its enemies' jet fighters,
536
00:28:27,739 --> 00:28:30,208
a program that grows out of U.S. losses
537
00:28:30,275 --> 00:28:32,510
in the early years of the Vietnam War.
538
00:28:35,046 --> 00:28:37,382
For every Russian-built MiG-21
539
00:28:37,449 --> 00:28:39,784
American pilots shoot down
in the conflict,
540
00:28:40,485 --> 00:28:44,222
nine U.S.-built F-4 fighters
are being destroyed.
541
00:28:47,692 --> 00:28:52,130
In 1968, the U.S. acquires a MiG-21
542
00:28:52,530 --> 00:28:56,234
that has been flown to Israel
by an Iraqi defector.
543
00:28:56,735 --> 00:28:59,971
The CIA secretly ships it to Area 51
544
00:29:00,105 --> 00:29:02,006
for evaluation testing
545
00:29:02,073 --> 00:29:05,043
under the codename "Have Doughnut."
546
00:29:05,944 --> 00:29:08,546
BARNES: The first time
I saw this baby was in 1968.
547
00:29:08,613 --> 00:29:11,249
One just like this, Groom Lake, Area 51.
548
00:29:11,382 --> 00:29:13,785
We pretty well tore it down
and looked at everything.
549
00:29:13,852 --> 00:29:15,553
The radios, the hydraulics,
550
00:29:15,920 --> 00:29:17,489
uh, the engines.
551
00:29:17,555 --> 00:29:19,891
Everything about this plane,
we examined it.
552
00:29:22,060 --> 00:29:24,262
NARRATOR:
The results of the MiG-21 evaluation
553
00:29:24,329 --> 00:29:26,498
at Area 51 are clear.
554
00:29:29,300 --> 00:29:31,669
It isn't the aircraft that's the problem.
555
00:29:32,871 --> 00:29:35,607
BARNES: We realized
it wasn't necessarily the planes.
556
00:29:35,840 --> 00:29:37,909
It was our people
did not know how to fight.
557
00:29:38,476 --> 00:29:39,511
Simple as that.
558
00:29:40,678 --> 00:29:43,681
NARRATOR: Now, Area 51
becomes the birthplace
559
00:29:43,748 --> 00:29:45,817
of a new top secret initiative:
560
00:29:46,551 --> 00:29:48,486
training American fighter pilots
561
00:29:48,753 --> 00:29:51,723
how to defeat Soviet MiGs in a dogfight.
562
00:29:53,191 --> 00:29:56,127
BARNES: We realized that it took
ten missions in the war zone
563
00:29:56,461 --> 00:30:00,265
for a pilot to become experienced enough
that he might survive the war.
564
00:30:00,365 --> 00:30:04,135
So we decided with
what we learned at Area 51,
565
00:30:04,502 --> 00:30:06,971
let's give these pilots
those ten missions
566
00:30:07,038 --> 00:30:09,941
in Nevada before we send them
to the war zone.
567
00:30:10,308 --> 00:30:11,776
NARRATOR:
To support this new program,
568
00:30:11,843 --> 00:30:15,413
Area 51 undergoes a new
construction phase.
569
00:30:17,282 --> 00:30:19,350
For the third time in its short life,
570
00:30:19,517 --> 00:30:20,985
more facilities are added.
571
00:30:22,887 --> 00:30:26,791
Five more hangars are constructed
at the south end of the test site.
572
00:30:28,560 --> 00:30:31,362
And to prevent any sightings
of the top secret
573
00:30:31,429 --> 00:30:33,431
U.S.-flown MiGs out at Groom,
574
00:30:34,299 --> 00:30:37,302
the airspace directly above the range
is closed...
575
00:30:38,203 --> 00:30:39,370
permanently.
576
00:30:42,340 --> 00:30:46,444
But despite extensive measures
to ensure the secrecy of the MiG training
577
00:30:46,511 --> 00:30:49,013
and combat operations at Area 51,
578
00:30:50,815 --> 00:30:53,952
its cover is almost blown in 1974...
579
00:30:55,887 --> 00:31:01,125
when Skylab astronauts unwittingly
photograph the base from space.
580
00:31:07,632 --> 00:31:09,167
The Skylab incident
581
00:31:09,234 --> 00:31:13,204
marks a watershed moment
in the life of Area 51.
582
00:31:14,839 --> 00:31:16,641
By the mid-1970s,
583
00:31:16,708 --> 00:31:19,744
the agency's U-2 and A-12 projects
584
00:31:20,044 --> 00:31:22,280
are winding down at the test site.
585
00:31:23,014 --> 00:31:25,049
Advances in satellite technology
586
00:31:25,116 --> 00:31:27,719
make high-flying spy planes redundant.
587
00:31:29,654 --> 00:31:32,724
Now, the U.S. Air Force
takes control of the base.
588
00:31:35,026 --> 00:31:37,795
MERLIN: That was a huge moment
in the history of Area 51.
589
00:31:38,863 --> 00:31:42,333
We're transitioning from
use by the intelligence community
590
00:31:42,400 --> 00:31:44,168
to the Department of Defense,
591
00:31:44,235 --> 00:31:47,472
ushering in one of the most
significant advancements
592
00:31:47,538 --> 00:31:50,508
in military technology:
the stealth revolution.
593
00:31:51,142 --> 00:31:52,210
NARRATOR:
When the U.S. Air Force
594
00:31:52,277 --> 00:31:55,680
takes control of Area 51 in 1978,
595
00:31:56,047 --> 00:31:59,183
it's in the middle of the most
highly classified project
596
00:31:59,250 --> 00:32:01,786
ever to have been through the test site.
597
00:32:02,253 --> 00:32:03,955
BARNES:
The most exciting plane
598
00:32:04,022 --> 00:32:06,891
that I worked on at Area 51
was the Have Blue.
599
00:32:06,958 --> 00:32:09,427
The prototypes when they
brought that thing in,
600
00:32:10,094 --> 00:32:13,164
it looked like something we'd never
seen before in our lives.
601
00:32:13,932 --> 00:32:17,001
NARRATOR: The flat-faceted
fuselage of the Have Blue
602
00:32:17,568 --> 00:32:19,404
is a revolutionary design.
603
00:32:20,672 --> 00:32:21,806
And it needs to be.
604
00:32:22,774 --> 00:32:26,144
The experimental jet is designed
with one goal in mind:
605
00:32:26,811 --> 00:32:28,112
stealth.
606
00:32:30,281 --> 00:32:33,718
Unlike the A-12,
which can be seen on radar
607
00:32:33,918 --> 00:32:36,487
but compensates by
flying in the stratosphere
608
00:32:36,554 --> 00:32:38,056
at supersonic speeds,
609
00:32:39,190 --> 00:32:41,826
the Have Blue, a sub-sonic jet,
610
00:32:42,260 --> 00:32:45,496
is designed to be
virtually invisible to radar.
611
00:32:45,964 --> 00:32:47,665
LAW:
When it took its radar tests,
612
00:32:47,732 --> 00:32:49,534
the people that were inside
that weren't cleared
613
00:32:49,600 --> 00:32:51,302
were looking at the radar and said,
614
00:32:51,803 --> 00:32:55,273
"Well, your, your model must have
fallen off the, uh,
615
00:32:55,873 --> 00:32:57,241
off that, uh, pole out there,
616
00:32:57,308 --> 00:32:59,043
because there's nothing up there anymore."
617
00:33:00,078 --> 00:33:02,780
NARRATOR: Not bad for
an aircraft 38 feet long,
618
00:33:03,014 --> 00:33:05,116
and with a wingspan of 22.
619
00:33:06,684 --> 00:33:09,087
This success sees the U.S. Air Force
620
00:33:09,153 --> 00:33:12,623
green-light production
of an operational aircraft,
621
00:33:12,957 --> 00:33:15,793
designated the F-117.
622
00:33:16,527 --> 00:33:18,596
But creating the world's first aircraft
623
00:33:18,663 --> 00:33:20,665
virtually invisible to radar
624
00:33:21,132 --> 00:33:24,302
has an impact on those
who work at Area 51.
625
00:33:25,269 --> 00:33:26,838
Some employees claim
626
00:33:27,205 --> 00:33:29,774
the disposal of anti-radar coatings
627
00:33:29,841 --> 00:33:32,844
used on the jet harms their health,
628
00:33:33,578 --> 00:33:38,316
an allegation that forces the president
of the United States to take action.
629
00:33:40,251 --> 00:33:41,753
NARRATOR:
Area 51.
630
00:33:42,553 --> 00:33:45,056
Since its creation in 1955,
631
00:33:45,490 --> 00:33:48,760
the exotic nature of the
CIA aircraft tested here
632
00:33:48,993 --> 00:33:50,895
break aviation records,
633
00:33:52,063 --> 00:33:55,466
flying higher and faster
than any aircraft before.
634
00:33:59,003 --> 00:34:00,505
During the Cold War,
635
00:34:00,772 --> 00:34:02,473
these clandestine jets
636
00:34:02,774 --> 00:34:04,675
flying from the secretive base
637
00:34:05,143 --> 00:34:07,378
fuel a raft of UFO sightings,
638
00:34:08,479 --> 00:34:10,815
firing the imagination of Americans
639
00:34:10,882 --> 00:34:13,785
already steeped in '50s UFO culture.
640
00:34:15,520 --> 00:34:16,888
MILITARY OFFICER:
The recent sightings
641
00:34:16,954 --> 00:34:18,956
are in no way connected
642
00:34:19,023 --> 00:34:21,192
with any secret developments
643
00:34:21,259 --> 00:34:23,594
by any agency of the Unites States.
644
00:34:24,762 --> 00:34:26,964
NARRATOR:
But denials that Area 51
645
00:34:27,432 --> 00:34:29,934
is at the heart of a UFO conspiracy
646
00:34:30,101 --> 00:34:31,235
fuels speculation,
647
00:34:32,036 --> 00:34:33,337
and in the 1980s,
648
00:34:33,604 --> 00:34:36,741
it reaches fever pitch with the
extraordinary claims
649
00:34:37,408 --> 00:34:38,576
of this man.
650
00:34:39,110 --> 00:34:40,344
BOB LAZAR:
Hi. I'm Bob Lazar.
651
00:34:41,012 --> 00:34:43,147
During late 1988 and early '89,
652
00:34:43,748 --> 00:34:46,751
I worked on the propulsions systems
of extra-terrestrial vehicles
653
00:34:46,818 --> 00:34:48,252
for the United States government.
654
00:34:48,986 --> 00:34:51,355
NARRATOR:
Lazar's claims about Area 51
655
00:34:51,989 --> 00:34:54,992
makes the base one of the most
talked about locations
656
00:34:55,059 --> 00:34:56,127
in the world.
657
00:34:57,428 --> 00:35:00,698
But the unwanted attention
can't come at a worse time
658
00:35:00,765 --> 00:35:01,966
for the U.S. Air Force.
659
00:35:03,668 --> 00:35:05,870
Area 51 is right at the heart
660
00:35:05,937 --> 00:35:08,739
of its most highly classified project yet:
661
00:35:09,640 --> 00:35:10,942
stealth.
662
00:35:11,809 --> 00:35:13,911
MERLIN: The level of
secrecy surrounding stealth
663
00:35:13,978 --> 00:35:16,781
is considered to be
comparable to or exceeding
664
00:35:16,848 --> 00:35:19,851
that of the Manhattan Project:
development of the atomic bomb.
665
00:35:20,651 --> 00:35:22,420
Stealth was absolutely vital
666
00:35:22,487 --> 00:35:24,622
to the future of military technology.
667
00:35:25,723 --> 00:35:29,494
NARRATOR: The creation of what
becomes the F-117 stealth bomber
668
00:35:29,927 --> 00:35:34,365
takes Area 51 into new era
of stealth technology.
669
00:35:34,999 --> 00:35:38,970
In particular, the development of
radar absorbing materials,
670
00:35:39,036 --> 00:35:40,605
or RAM.
671
00:35:41,272 --> 00:35:44,108
MERLIN:
The concept of RAM is not classified,
672
00:35:44,308 --> 00:35:45,643
but its composition
673
00:35:46,077 --> 00:35:48,579
was one of the hottest secrets
at all of the era.
674
00:35:49,413 --> 00:35:50,515
To this day,
675
00:35:50,615 --> 00:35:53,951
the Defense Department
considers RAM to be top secret.
676
00:35:54,619 --> 00:35:56,320
NARRATOR:
Radar absorbing material,
677
00:35:56,387 --> 00:35:57,989
as the name suggests,
678
00:35:58,055 --> 00:36:01,159
is a class of materials
used to disguise a vehicle,
679
00:36:01,225 --> 00:36:02,793
or structure, from radar.
680
00:36:04,095 --> 00:36:07,098
Experts surmise that the F-117's RAM
681
00:36:07,465 --> 00:36:10,434
is made up of sheets
about the thickness of linoleum,
682
00:36:10,568 --> 00:36:14,672
and a paint containing tiny spheres
coated with iron ferrite,
683
00:36:15,072 --> 00:36:17,875
which vibrate when hit by radar waves.
684
00:36:20,444 --> 00:36:23,414
The exact make-up of this
radar absorbent material
685
00:36:23,481 --> 00:36:24,782
is still top secret,
686
00:36:25,383 --> 00:36:26,684
but according to this man,
687
00:36:27,351 --> 00:36:29,820
RAM is the reason he's dying.
688
00:36:30,555 --> 00:36:35,693
DUNHAM: Well, these pills here
are, uh, vitamin D-3 pills,
689
00:36:35,760 --> 00:36:37,895
which are supposed to be very good for
690
00:36:38,563 --> 00:36:43,334
stimulating, uh, cell growth in
the, the lungs and things like that.
691
00:36:43,534 --> 00:36:47,538
The doctors told me that
I might live to be 64.
692
00:36:48,272 --> 00:36:50,408
That means I only have a year left.
693
00:36:51,976 --> 00:36:55,613
NARRATOR: Fred Dunham,
a former Area 51 security guard,
694
00:36:55,680 --> 00:36:58,683
suffers from chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease,
695
00:36:59,350 --> 00:37:01,285
a condition he says he developed
696
00:37:01,352 --> 00:37:03,921
overseeing the disposal of barrels of RAM
697
00:37:04,121 --> 00:37:07,925
in burn pits at Area 51 in the 1980s.
698
00:37:09,760 --> 00:37:13,998
DUNHAM:
The drums contained carbon fiber resin,
699
00:37:15,399 --> 00:37:18,302
and sealants for making the wings,
700
00:37:18,369 --> 00:37:21,072
uh, and different parts of the aircraft,
701
00:37:21,372 --> 00:37:24,141
that were very hazardous when
they were burned.
702
00:37:25,643 --> 00:37:28,212
NARRATOR:
No satellite images of Area 51
703
00:37:28,279 --> 00:37:30,881
that show these burn pits
are known to exist,
704
00:37:31,716 --> 00:37:33,651
but according to Dunham's description,
705
00:37:33,951 --> 00:37:37,321
it is possible to plot them
onto a map of the base.
706
00:37:37,588 --> 00:37:43,461
DUNHAM: They were just west
of the south gate control point.
707
00:37:44,095 --> 00:37:47,365
There was at least six,
maybe seven burn pits
708
00:37:47,431 --> 00:37:50,735
that were right within 300 yards
709
00:37:50,801 --> 00:37:53,471
of the base population.
710
00:37:54,472 --> 00:37:58,209
NARRATOR: According to Dunham,
each burn lasts 24 hours,
711
00:37:58,276 --> 00:37:59,844
and happens twice a week
712
00:38:00,111 --> 00:38:02,813
for a three-year period
through the mid-'80s,
713
00:38:03,314 --> 00:38:06,450
exposing him to clouds of toxic fumes.
714
00:38:09,520 --> 00:38:10,955
DUNHAM:
It was like someone had burned
715
00:38:11,622 --> 00:38:14,158
a bunch of rubber tires.
716
00:38:14,225 --> 00:38:18,729
Uh, the soot that was in the air
was unbelievable.
717
00:38:20,097 --> 00:38:22,266
NARRATOR: Dunham believes
his breathing problems
718
00:38:22,333 --> 00:38:24,568
come from the soot and the fumes.
719
00:38:25,603 --> 00:38:26,904
DUNHAM,
I'm a non-smoker,
720
00:38:27,872 --> 00:38:30,941
and the doctor told me
that my lungs look like
721
00:38:31,409 --> 00:38:34,011
the lungs of an 80-year-old man
722
00:38:34,078 --> 00:38:38,449
who had smoked four packs
of cigarettes every day.
723
00:38:39,483 --> 00:38:40,651
NARRATOR:
In the '90s,
724
00:38:40,718 --> 00:38:43,054
the former security guard,
along with others,
725
00:38:43,321 --> 00:38:46,757
brings a case against the state
for medical compensation.
726
00:38:47,692 --> 00:38:52,129
But the case is rejected when
President Clinton signs a determination
727
00:38:52,196 --> 00:38:55,666
which excludes Groom Lake
from any investigation,
728
00:38:55,733 --> 00:38:58,235
on the grounds of national security.
729
00:39:02,173 --> 00:39:03,641
NARRATOR:
For nearly 60 years,
730
00:39:03,708 --> 00:39:07,278
the true story of Area 51
was hidden from the public.
731
00:39:08,746 --> 00:39:11,849
But the release of CIA documents in 2013
732
00:39:12,516 --> 00:39:13,851
helps change that.
733
00:39:15,019 --> 00:39:17,888
MERLIN: These documents
from various government agencies,
734
00:39:18,022 --> 00:39:19,457
finally declassified,
735
00:39:19,990 --> 00:39:23,627
confirm the existence of Area 51
as an official entity,
736
00:39:23,828 --> 00:39:26,630
and we can at last begin to
unravel its secrets.
737
00:39:26,997 --> 00:39:29,767
NARRATOR: Those documents,
along with satellite imagery,
738
00:39:30,167 --> 00:39:31,435
are now helping to map
739
00:39:31,502 --> 00:39:34,238
how top secret programs at Area 51
740
00:39:34,638 --> 00:39:36,006
have changed the base,
741
00:39:36,340 --> 00:39:38,976
a place we now know
continuously evolves
742
00:39:39,043 --> 00:39:40,978
in line with national priorities,
743
00:39:41,612 --> 00:39:44,115
and with each program that comes along.
744
00:39:44,815 --> 00:39:45,883
MERLIN:
If you looked at the aerial
745
00:39:45,950 --> 00:39:48,085
and satellite photographs
taken over the years,
746
00:39:48,352 --> 00:39:49,553
you can see the changes.
747
00:39:50,221 --> 00:39:53,657
New runways. New hangars.
More infrastructure.
748
00:39:54,325 --> 00:39:56,927
It's constantly growing
and changing and building.
749
00:39:57,962 --> 00:39:59,730
This is not a static facility.
750
00:39:59,830 --> 00:40:01,232
It's extremely dynamic.
751
00:40:02,299 --> 00:40:04,335
NARRATOR:
As Area 51 has changed,
752
00:40:04,969 --> 00:40:06,704
so, too, has its role.
753
00:40:07,405 --> 00:40:11,041
BARNES: Area 51 is not really in
the common sense, an airbase.
754
00:40:11,175 --> 00:40:13,110
Area 51 is the proving ground.
755
00:40:13,177 --> 00:40:15,713
That's where we can say it works,
or it doesn't work.
756
00:40:17,615 --> 00:40:19,784
You know, a lot of the missions
will not touch down there.
757
00:40:20,151 --> 00:40:22,019
They will just fly over the base,
758
00:40:22,353 --> 00:40:24,622
and we can evaluate
what they have come up with.
759
00:40:25,089 --> 00:40:27,491
It's a proof of concept facility.
760
00:40:27,558 --> 00:40:30,261
It's where we prove this will work
or this will not work.
761
00:40:30,995 --> 00:40:33,531
NARRATOR:
Created in the '50s to test the U-2,
762
00:40:34,165 --> 00:40:37,134
the CIA's secret base has given the U.S.
763
00:40:37,201 --> 00:40:38,936
the edge over its enemies
764
00:40:39,236 --> 00:40:40,638
for more than half a century.
765
00:40:43,507 --> 00:40:44,942
MERLIN:
Area 51 is the place
766
00:40:45,009 --> 00:40:47,878
where we have developed
all of our stealth technologies,
767
00:40:48,112 --> 00:40:51,882
from the early advances of the A-12
through the modern era.
768
00:40:52,149 --> 00:40:53,651
Every U.S. stealth aircraft
769
00:40:54,351 --> 00:40:56,987
has been tested at Area 51
in one way or another.
770
00:40:57,655 --> 00:40:59,023
NARRATOR:
These programs include
771
00:40:59,089 --> 00:41:02,293
the B-2, advanced cruise missile systems,
772
00:41:03,127 --> 00:41:06,030
the Air Force's latest operational
strike aircraft,
773
00:41:06,263 --> 00:41:08,499
the Raptor, and drones,
774
00:41:08,566 --> 00:41:11,769
now commonplace in combat zones
across the world.
775
00:41:15,706 --> 00:41:18,442
The Raptor, unlike the F-117,
776
00:41:18,909 --> 00:41:20,911
is still an operational aircraft.
777
00:41:21,512 --> 00:41:24,949
But it, like all of the
U.S. Air Force stealth programs
778
00:41:25,015 --> 00:41:28,519
carried out at Groom Lake in
the 1980s and 1990s,
779
00:41:29,820 --> 00:41:31,722
remains highly classified.
780
00:41:32,690 --> 00:41:35,159
MERLIN: Today we know about
the programs like the U-2,
781
00:41:36,026 --> 00:41:38,229
Oxcart, the stealth fighter,
782
00:41:39,163 --> 00:41:42,766
and other demonstrators have come
since then. Tacit Blue. The Bird of Prey.
783
00:41:43,434 --> 00:41:46,170
But there are so many other projects,
both manned and unmanned,
784
00:41:46,637 --> 00:41:48,405
that we may not hear about for decades.
785
00:41:49,306 --> 00:41:51,842
BARNES:
Area 51 is light years ahead.
786
00:41:52,076 --> 00:41:54,845
There's no one even coming
close to the technology
787
00:41:54,912 --> 00:41:56,213
we have developed out there.
788
00:41:56,480 --> 00:41:58,549
And it will continue,
but that's the only way
789
00:41:59,416 --> 00:42:02,186
that we can remain free, safe,
790
00:42:02,753 --> 00:42:05,956
and be superior, is Area 51.
791
00:42:07,024 --> 00:42:10,528
NARRATOR: It's clear that
the CIA story of Area 51
792
00:42:11,028 --> 00:42:14,498
has played a key role in keeping
America safe from its enemies.
793
00:42:16,033 --> 00:42:18,802
Beginning with the U-2 and A-12 projects,
794
00:42:19,470 --> 00:42:22,706
America's secret base
saved lives in Vietnam.
795
00:42:23,807 --> 00:42:25,442
BARNES:
The "Have Doughnut" program
796
00:42:25,743 --> 00:42:28,178
completely turned around
the kill ratio in Vietnam
797
00:42:28,646 --> 00:42:30,514
from 9 to 1 against us.
798
00:42:30,814 --> 00:42:33,984
We'd lost over 8,000 helicopters alone,
799
00:42:34,418 --> 00:42:35,653
knocked down by the MiGs,
800
00:42:36,253 --> 00:42:38,289
and we completely turned that around
801
00:42:38,822 --> 00:42:40,991
to the point today
we hadn't lost a plane to
802
00:42:41,625 --> 00:42:45,963
air to air combat in several wars.
Not years, but wars.
803
00:42:46,363 --> 00:42:49,800
NARRATOR: And it's a trend
that continues with the F-117,
804
00:42:50,668 --> 00:42:53,270
an aircraft that fought successfully
in not one,
805
00:42:53,737 --> 00:42:55,239
but two wars in Iraq,
806
00:42:55,773 --> 00:42:57,007
with no losses.
807
00:42:57,942 --> 00:42:59,977
LAW: When you start off
with an experimental program,
808
00:43:00,411 --> 00:43:02,880
you have to cross your fingers
that everybody knows what they're doing,
809
00:43:02,947 --> 00:43:04,381
and it's gonna work out right.
810
00:43:04,448 --> 00:43:06,517
And of course, we were amazed
811
00:43:06,784 --> 00:43:10,220
that it could do so well
with bullets flying through the air,
812
00:43:10,287 --> 00:43:11,922
and missiles and everything coming up.
813
00:43:11,989 --> 00:43:13,324
We were all wondering, "Oh, my God.
814
00:43:13,390 --> 00:43:16,327
How can anything survive
all that stuff in the air?"
815
00:43:17,761 --> 00:43:21,165
NARRATOR:
Now, nearly 60 years after its creation,
816
00:43:21,765 --> 00:43:26,503
Area 51 is still at the forefront
of military technology development.
817
00:43:27,571 --> 00:43:30,541
We may not know what projects
are being developed there,
818
00:43:31,208 --> 00:43:33,544
but for those who have
played a part in its story,
819
00:43:34,378 --> 00:43:38,749
the need for these secret projects
is still as great as ever.
820
00:43:39,483 --> 00:43:41,919
LAW: I'm sure that there's
something else going on out there.
821
00:43:42,252 --> 00:43:46,690
I'm glad that we're doing it,
and I don't have a need to know about it,
822
00:43:46,757 --> 00:43:48,993
but I'm glad somebody's
going to the next step.
823
00:43:49,393 --> 00:43:50,427
We did our best.
824
00:43:50,494 --> 00:43:53,030
Now somebody else has
the project that's gonna be
825
00:43:53,664 --> 00:43:54,965
doing something in the future,
826
00:43:55,032 --> 00:43:58,369
and I'm glad this country is doing things
that we don't know about.
827
00:43:58,435 --> 00:44:00,938
Just like we were doing things
that they didn't know about.
828
00:44:01,005 --> 00:44:02,006
Captioned by Point.360
63153
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.