Tonopah Test Range Airport
Encyclopedia
Tonopah Test Range
Tonopah Test Range , also known as Area 52, is a restricted military installation located about southeast of Tonopah, Nevada. It is part of the northern fringe of the Nellis Range, measuring . Tonopah Test Range is located about northwest of Groom Dry Lake, home of the Area 51 facility...
, 27 NM southeast of Tonopah
Tonopah, Nevada
Tonopah is a census-designated place located in and the county seat of Nye County, Nevada. It is located at the junction of U.S. Routes 6 and 95 approximately mid-way between Las Vegas and Reno....
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
and 140 mi (225.3 km) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
. It is a major airfield with a 12000 foot runway, instrument approach facilities, and nighttime illumination. The facility boasts over fifty hangars and an extensive support infrastructure.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
Location identifier
A location identifier is a symbolic representation for the name and the location of an airport, navigation aid, or weather station, and is used for manned air traffic control facilities in air traffic control, telecommunications, computer programming, weather reports, and related services.-ICAO...
for the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
and IATA
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
, Tonopah Test Range is assigned TNX by the FAA and XSD by the IATA (which assigned TNX to Stung Treng
Stung Treng
Stung Treng is the capital of Stung Treng Province, Cambodia. It is located in the western part of the Virachey National Park.It is the major city of both the district and province and has a population of 29,665 ....
, Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
). The airport's ICAO
International Civil Aviation Organization
The International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...
identifier is KTNX.
Tonopah is owned by the USAF
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command
Air Combat Command is a major command of the United States Air Force. ACC is one of ten major commands , reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force ....
. The known primary use of this airport is to shuttle government employees to the weapons test range from McCarran International Airport
McCarran International Airport
McCarran International Airport is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. The airport is located five miles south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated area of Paradise in Clark County. It covers an area of and...
in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
.
The primary (paved) access to the facility is off of U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 6 , also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, a name that honors an American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the U.S. Highway system, running east-northeast from Bishop, California to Provincetown, Massachusetts. Until 1964, it continued south from Bishop to...
at the north end of the airport. Dirt road access points also exist on the south and east sides of the range. The site is plainly visible from commercial airliners, which pass 17 NM north of the base on transcontinental flights.
History
The Tonopah Test Range airfield came into existence in 1957 and was largely used by the Department of Energy, the Air Force, and several contractors. The airfield was presumably originally built to support drop tests of nuclear weapons to support the AEC/DOE test programs, and only later was taken over by the military for flight testing. The area was open range, with wild horses running free.1957-1968: The early years
The Tonopah range first opened in 1957, supporting operations on the Test Range itself, which was used for United States Atomic Energy CommissionUnited States Atomic Energy Commission
The United States Atomic Energy Commission was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by Congress to foster and control the peace time development of atomic science and technology. President Harry S...
(AEC, later Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
or DOE)) funded weapon programs. It was apparently not a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
era field, as it is not listed in the 1944 US Army/Navy Directory of Airfields. It was apparently established as an Air Force facility at some point in the late 1950s, as Tonopah Air Force Station was the location of a radar site operated by the 866th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron to provide active surveillance over the area. On 5 May 1965 Tonopah AFS became part of the Air Warfare Center based at Nellis AFB, however the runway may have not been completed until after 1967, as it was not depicted on the 1967 Mt. Whitney Sectional Chart. The earliest known depiction of the airfield was on the July 1970 Air Force Tactical Pilotage Chart. The 1982 Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is a Frederick, Maryland-based non-profit political organization. Incorporated on 15 May 1939, AOPA's membership consists mainly of general aviation pilots in the United States...
Airport Directory described the Tonopah Test Range airfield as having a single 6600 ft (2,012 m) paved runway.
1968-1990 Foreign Technology Evaluation
During the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, one of the missions carried out at Tonopah was the test and evaluation of captured Soviet fighter aircraft. Under the HAVE DOUGHNUT, HAVE DRILL and HAVE FERRY programs, the first MiGs flown in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, were used to evaluate the aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
in performance and technical capabilities, as well as in operational capability, pitting the types against U.S. fighters.
This was not a new mission, as testing of foreign technology by the USAF began during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After the war, testing of acquired foreign technology was performed by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC, which became very influential during the Korean War), under the direct command of the Air Materiel Control Department. In 1961 ATIC became the Foreign Technology Division (FTD), and was reassigned to Air Force Systems Command
Air Force Systems Command
Air Force Systems Command is a former United States Air Force command. Its headquarters was located at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland...
. ATIC personnel were sent anywhere where foreign aircraft could be found.
The focus of Air Force Systems Command
Air Force Systems Command
Air Force Systems Command is a former United States Air Force command. Its headquarters was located at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland...
limited the use of the fighter as a tool with which to train the front line
Front line
A front line is the farthest-most forward position of an armed force's personnel and equipment - generally in respect of maritime or land forces. Forward Line of Own Troops , or Forward Edge of Battle Area are technical terms used by all branches of the armed services...
tactical fighter pilots. Air Force Systems Command recruited its pilots from the Air Force Flight Test Center
Air Force Flight Test Center
The Air Force Flight Test Center conducts research, development, test, and evaluation of aerospace systems from concept to deployment. It has test flown every aircraft in the U.S. Air Force's inventory since World War II...
at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
, California, who were usually graduates from various test pilot schools. Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
selected its pilots primarily from the ranks of the Weapons School graduates.
In August 1966, Iraqi Air Force
Iraqi Air Force
The Iraqi Air Force or IQAF is the military branch in Iraq responsible for the policing of international borders, surveillance of national assets and aerial operations...
fighter pilot Captain Munir Redfa
Munir Redfa
Munir Redfa was an Iraqi fighter pilot, of ethnic Assyrian origin, who defected to Israel in 1966 by flying a MiG-21 of the Iraqi Air Force. In what is considered as one of the Mossad's most successful operations, Redfa's entire extended family was smuggled safely out of Iraq to Israel...
defected, flying his MiG-21 to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
after being ordered to attack Iraqi Kurd villages with napalm. His aircraft was transferred to Nevada within a month. In 1968 the US Air Force and Navy jointly formed a project known as Have Donut in which they flew this acquired Soviet made MiG-21 aircraft in simulated air combat training at a top secret facility in Nevada known as Detachment 3, Air Force Flight Test Center, also known as Groom Lake and Area-51
Area 51
Area 51 is a military base, and a remote detachment of Edwards Air Force Base. It is located in the southern portion of Nevada in the western United States, 83 miles north-northwest of downtown Las Vegas. Situated at its center, on the southern shore of Groom Lake, is a large military airfield...
. That facility was the birthplace of the SR-71 as well as other projects that remain to be discussed.
In 1968 two ex-Iraqi MiG-17s transferred from Israeli stocks were added to the operation and it was renamed Have Drill and the project was transferred to the Tonopah Test Range Airport. These aircraft were given USAF designations and fake serial numbers so that they may be identified in DOD standard flight logs. In May 1973, Project Have Idea was formed which took over from the older Have Donut, Have Ferry and Have Drill projects.
4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron
In May 1973, when Project HAVE IDEA was initiated for joint technical and tactical evaluation of Soviet aircraft types, the tactical evaluation flights of foreign aircraft were undertaken by Detachment 1, 57th Fighter Weapons Wing.
In 1980 the 4477th TEF was re-designated as the 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron
4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron
The 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron was a squadron in the United States Air Force under the command of the Tactical Air Command. The product of Project Constant Peg, the unit was created to train USAF pilots and weapon systems officers, and USN and USMC naval aviators to better fight the...
and the operation was renamed again to Constant Peg. The squadron developed realistic combat training operations featuring adversary tactics, dissimilar air combat training, and electronic warfare. Over the years more aircraft were acquired until they numbered about two dozen including ultra modern MiG-23s. Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
was thought to turn over a number of un-needed MiGs but planes kept coming in from other sources as well. No less than three Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n pilots brought their MiGs to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. A number of Chinese made MiGs were purchased outright from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
via the front company Combat Core Certification Professionals Company (CCCP!) and imported in crates. Three Syrians flew their MiG-23 and MiG-29s to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in 1988.
Over the course of its history the 4477th pilots flew three models of Soviet-designed MiGs.
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the USSR from 1952 and operated by numerous air forces in many variants. Most MiG-17 variants cannot carry air-to-air missiles, but shot down many aircraft with its cannons...
were a subsonic, early jet aircraft design. Though originally meant to counter American bombers of the 1950s and 1960s, durable, cigar-shaped MiG-17s became North Vietnam’s primary fighter and eventually served in at least 20 air forces worldwide. MiG-17s were designated as:
- YF-113A Soviet MiG-17F NATO:"Fresco-C" used in Have Drill program
- YF-113C Chinese J-5 used in Have Privilege program
- YF-114C Soviet MiG-17F NATO:"Fresco-C" used in Have Ferry program
- YF-114D Soviet MiG-17PF NATO:"Fresco-D" (Serial: 75-008)
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 is a supersonic jet fighter aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. It was popularly nicknamed "balalaika", from the aircraft's planform-view resemblance to the Russian stringed musical instrument or ołówek by Polish pilots due to...
were cone-nosed, supersonic fighters that were somewhat less maneuverable than MiG-17s. They also saw action with the North Vietnamese and became a popular export aircraft, with more than 8,000 produced. MiG-21s were designated as:
- YF-110B Soviet MiG-21F-13 NATO:"Fishbed-C/E" (Serials assigned: 75-001, 75-004 and 75-010)
- YF-110C Chinese Chengdu J-7B (MiG-21F-13 variant)
- YF-110D Soviet MiG-21MF NATO:"Fishbed-J"
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 is a variable-geometry fighter aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union. It is considered to belong to the Soviet third generation jet fighter category, along with similarly aged Soviet fighters such as the MiG-25 "Foxbat"...
( were the MiG-21’s replacement. Their swing-wing was patterned on that of the F-111, but unlike their US antecedent, the MiG-23s were small and light enough to serve as dogfighters. MiG-23s were designated as:
- YF-113B Soviet MiG-23BN NATO:"Flogger-F"
- YF-113E Soviet MiG-23MS NATO:"Flogger-E"
In addition, unconfirmed Soviet aircraft flown were MiG-25 Foxbat (YF-116); MiG-29 Fulcrum (YF-118) and Sukhoi Su-22 Fitter (YF-112).
Aerial dogfights were staged between the various MiG models against virtually every fighter in US service, and against SAC’s B-52 Stratofortress and B-58 Hustlers to judge the ability of the bombers countermeasures systems, they performed radar cross-section and propulsion tests that contributed greatly to improvements in US aerial performance.
All the models had quirks. The MiG-17 did not have an electric seat, so pilots had to use cushions to position themselves properly inside the cockpit. Both it and the MiG-21 had pneumatic brakes applied by squeezing a lever on the front of the stick. Many of the MiG-21s did not have steerable nose gears, making them difficult to taxi; the sign of a novice Fishbed pilot was the zigzag track he made while moving on the ground. If a pilot put the throttle back on a MiG-21, it would take a long time to spool up again when trying to accelerate. Thus many of those who flew it stayed on afterburners as much as possible. The MiG-23 did not have that problem, as it was designed for speed-but it was unstable and difficult to fly.
None of the Soviet-designed aircraft at Tonopah flew in bad weather or at night. All were very short-legged, compared to contemporary US aircraft, and sorties were limited to 20 minutes or so. The MiGs had US airspeed indicators and a few other minor instrument and safety modifications. Other than that, they were stock-down to their Warsaw Pact paint jobs. Two pilots of the 4477th died flying the Soviet planes. The pilots had no manuals for the aircraft, although some tried to write one. Nor was there a consistent supply of spare parts, which had to be refurbished or manufactured at high cost.
What was learned during these projects prompted the US Navy to commence Top Gun
Top Gun
Top Gun may refer to:* Top Gun is a 1986 film starring Tom Cruise.**Top Gun , soundtrack to the movie**Top Gun , a number of games based on the movie...
exercises first at NAS Miramar, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and then NAS Fallon, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. Shortly thereafter the Air Force commenced its Red Flag
Red flag
In politics, a red flag is a symbol of Socialism, or Communism, or sometimes left-wing politics in general. It has been associated with left-wing politics since the French Revolution. Socialists adopted the symbol during the Revolutions of 1848 and it became a symbol of communism as a result of its...
exercises at Nellis AFB, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
.
Near the end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
the program was abandoned and the squadron was disbanded. Flight operations closed down in March 1988, although the 4477th was not inactivated until July 1990, according to one official Air Force history. In 2006, the Constant Peg program was declassified and the USAF held a series of press conferences about the former top secret US MiGs. It was revealed that the US MiGs flew more than 15,000 sorties and nearly 7,000 aircrew flew in training against dissimilar aggressors in the Nevada desert between 1980 and the end of the program in 1988.
1982-1992: The F-117A Program
Groom Lake
Groom Lake is a salt flat in Nevada used for runways of the Nellis Bombing Range Test Site airport on the north of the Area 51 USAF military installation. The lake at elevation is ~ from north to south and from east to west at its widest point...
Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. Although ideal for testing, the Groom Lake test site was not a suitable location for an operational base, so a new covert base had to be established. In the summer of 1979, Tonopah Test Range Airport was selected to be the home of the Tactical Air Command 4450th Tactical Group
4450th Tactical Group
The 4450th Tactical Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was headquartered at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, and operationally located at Tonopah Test Range Airport, Nevada. It was inactivated on 5 October 1989.-History:...
(4450th TG). The mission of the 4450th at Tonopah was to guide the classified F-117A Stealth Fighter to an initial operating capability.
Beginning in October 1979 Tonopah Test Range Airport was reconstructed and expanded. The base was immediately staffed with US Air Force security police. The flight line was walled off with a double fence; the only access to the runway was through gates. The area between the fences was lighted at night and had intruder detectors. At first, the facilities were limited to a few buildings, a small mess hall, and sixteen winterized trailers. Security checkpoints were placed on the sole public access road which led to the TTR. The 6000 ft (1,829 m) runway was lengthened to 10000 ft (3,048 m). Taxiways, a concrete apron, a large maintenance hangar, and a propane storage tank were added. Phase II of the expansion consisted of the construction of an extra taxiway, a new control tower, a 42000 square feet (3,901.9 m²) hangar, a parts warehouse, a dining hall, a water storage tank, and extensive fuel storage tanks. Phase III expansion of the facility was a 2000 ft (610 m) runway extension to a total length of 12000 ft (3,658 m). Extensions were made to taxiways, the ramp, the runway gained arrester gear, and new navigation aids were installed. More fuel storage was provided, together with Liquid Oxygen (LOX) storage, a fire station, and the first 24 aircraft hangars. The cost was over $100 million.
On May 17, 1982, the move of the 4450th TG from Groom Lake to Tonopah was initiated and completed in 1983. The F-117 project was highly classified and Tonopah Test Range became a black project
Black project
In the United States and United Kingdom, a black project is in the vernacular a classified military/defense project, unacknowledged publicly by the government, military personnel, and defense contractors. Examples of U.S...
facility. Nearly all Air Force personnel and their families lived in the city of Las Vegas. The Air Force member was assigned to Nellis AFB and was considered to be working "uprange". A typical Air Force member would drive to Nellis AFB on Monday and board a contract Key Airlines
Key Airlines
Key Airlines, formerly known as Sun Valley Airlines, was a charter United States airline.-The early years: Commuter operations:The airline was originally based in Sun Valley, Idaho. In the early 1970s Sun Valley Airlines and Key Airlines merged to form Key Airlines...
Boeing 727-100
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
aircraft, which operated about 15 daily flights between the two bases. The member would live in dormitories at "Mancamp" during the work week, then fly back to Nellis AFB Thursday afternoon or Friday morning. All dormitory rooms had private bathrooms and showers, televisions with about 30 cable TV channels, a telephone with unrestricted local service to Las Vegas, access to laundry rooms in the building, and access to 24-hour recreational and dining facilities around Mancamp. Civilian engineers and executives were allowed to commute on the Key Airlines or Janet
Janet (airline)
Janet is the de facto name for a small fleet of passenger aircraft operated by defense contractor EG&G. Their aircraft currently serve mostly the Nevada Test Site from their terminal at Las Vegas' McCarran International Airport...
flights, but all other civilians generally lived in the surrounding region and drove to the TTR in their own vehicles or commuted in chartered buses.
Routine F-117 operations began in the mid-1980s. Before each night's sorties, there would be a mass briefing of the pilots, followed by target and route study. The hangar doors were not opened until one hour after sunset. This meant the first takeoff would not be made until about 7:00 P.M. in winter and 9:30 P.M. in the summer. Eventually two waves were flown per night. This involved eight primary aircraft and two spares, for a total of eighteen sorties. The aircraft would fly the first wave (called the "early-go"), then return to TTR and be serviced. A second group of pilots would then fly the second wave (the "late-go"). Typically, the training flights simulated actual missions. A normal mission would have two targets and several turn points. On other nights, there would be a "turkey shoot" with some fourteen targets. The pilots would get points for each one; at the end of the night, they would be added up to see who "won." The missions ranged across the southwest, and the targets were changed each time, to make it more challenging. The second wave was completed by about 2:30 or 3:00 A.M. in the winter, a few hours later in the summer. The planes had to be in their hangars and the doors closed one hour before sunrise. After landing, the pilots would be debriefed.
The area around TTR was closely monitored. If a truck was seen in the hills around the base, it would be checked out, as were airplanes flying near the base's restricted airspace. Air Force members were also prohibited from driving into the town of Tonopah without special permission. Internal security at the base was also stringent. Personnel crossing into the double-fence area housing the hangars and flightline were required to pass through a security control point. This relied upon the Identimat hand geometry scanner, a biometric technology acquired by Wackenhut
Wackenhut
G4S Secure Solutions is a private security company. It was founded as The Wackenhut Corporation in 1954, in Coral Gables, Florida, by George Wackenhut and three partners ....
, the same company that provided perimeter security on the TTR. The F-117 operations building was a giant vault with no windows. Within the building was another vault room where the flight manuals were stored. When in use, the manuals always had to be in the pilot's physical possession. If a pilot had to go to the bathroom, his manuals were loaned to another pilot or returned to the vault.
The new F-117 fleet was considered for several high-profile military operations during the mid 1980s, but operations remained largely confined to nighttime flights around Nevada and California for a number of years. It took a presidential authorization to begin off-range flights. In the event of an unscheduled landing, the pilots carried a signed letter from a senior Air Force general ordering the base or wing commander to protect the aircraft.
Transition to white world operations
In spite of the tight security, the Air Force was already making plans to “normalize” future support within the AF Logistics Command structure. As a “black” program, it would probably never achieve a support structure similar to that for F-15s for F-111s. Sacramento Air Logistics Center was tasked in late 1983/early 1984 to prepare to take on full logistics and management responsibility for support of the F-117A. A depot was established in 1984 to accomplish repairs and install modifications on the aircraft. This depot, first located in Lockheed’s Palmdale Plant 10 (PS-77), eventually took the place of Lockheed Depot Field Teams performing the depot work at Tonopah. The F-117s were moved between the TTR and depot by C-5, and were only loaded and unloaded at night. This arrangement required the aircraft to be defueled, disassembled, cradled, and then loaded aboard the C-5, flown to the depot, and unloaded before the real work could begin. Of course, this meant that the reverse actions had to occur at the end of the depot work before the aircraft could be reassembled, flight-tested, and redelivered to Tonopah.In addition to the logistical problems, the security also created safety problems. The nighttime operations resulted in two F-117A losses due to spatial disorientation, one of the planes crashing 30 miles east of the airfield in October 1987. An F-117 based at Tonopah Test Range and piloted by Maj. Ross Mulhare crashed on July 11, 1986 near Bakersfield, California. Another F-117 piloted by Michael C. Stewart was lost on October 14, 1987 on the range about 30 miles east of the TTR Airfield, and it took the Air Force nearly a day to find the wreckage In both crashes the pilot was killed on impact, and both were attributed to fatigue and disorientation.
In November 1988 the Air Force formally acknowledged its F-117 activities at Tonopah, bringing what was a "black world" program into "gray world" status. However F-117 flight operations continued to be restricted to the nighttime hours. Late in 1989 the Air Force began preparations to lead the F-117 into regular Air Force operations. This would be done in two phases: first, bringing the aircraft under the umbrella of the Tactical Air Command, and second, locating the fleet at a regular Air Force base. The first phase came on October 5, 1989 when the 4450th Tactical Group was deactivated and the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing from George AFB was assigned to Tonopah. The Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command
Tactical Air Command is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 being headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia...
(TAC) also activated the Det 1, 57 Fighter Weapons Wing (FWW) at Tonopah. During this phase, three pairs of F-117 aircraft left the TTR for Panama in December 1989 to participate in Operation JUST CAUSE. Only one mission with two F-117As was attempted.
The second phase of real-world integration came in January 1990 with the announcement that the 37th TFW would move from Tonopah to Holloman AFB, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, which would ultimately be delayed due to the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
. In April 1990, the F-117 was placed on public display at Nellis AFB and the Air Force mission at Tonopah Test Range became a mostly-unclassified "white world" program, though at no time would the general public be permitted near the TTR complex or on the Nellis Range. During this phase, daytime F-117 flying operations began. Previously, training sorties were flown at nighttime under radio silence and without air traffic control contact. The change to daytime, white-world flying required much less vigilance on the part of pilots and was cited as improving the safety of training operations.
Drawdown of F-117A operations
Summer 1990 saw the peak of Air Force activity at the Tonopah Test Range Airport. After the Iraqi invasion of KuwaitInvasion of Kuwait
The Invasion of Kuwait, also known as the Iraq-Kuwait War, was a major conflict between the Republic of Iraq and the State of Kuwait, which resulted in the seven-month long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, which subsequently led to direct military intervention by United States-led forces in the Gulf...
the base was mobilized to support Desert Shield. On August 19, 1990, 22 F-117A's from the 415th and a dozen tankers left Tonopah for Langley AFB. A total of 18 F-117s would continue onward to Khamis Mushait
Khamis Mushait
Khamis Mushait is a city in south-west Saudi Arabia, located 35 minutes east of Abha, the provincial seat of the Asir province. It is the capital of the Shahran Tribe. Until the 1970s Khamis Mushait was a small town of less than 50,000 servicing the surrounding mild-climate agricultural region...
Air Base in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
for Operation DESERT SHIELD
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, followed by hundreds of TTR support personnel. The planes and a contingent of Tonopah Test Range personnel remained in Saudi Arabia until late 1991. As a result of the deployment and the pending relocation to New Mexico, flying operations and staffing at the TTR declined significantly during 1991. Some of the support facilities which had been open 24 hours a day, such as the dining halls and library, began routinely closing at night.
The official ceremony for the F-117A arrival at Holloman AFB came on May 9, 1992, setting into motion the final exodus of the Air Force at Tonopah. On June 1, 1992 Det 1, 57 FWW moved from Tonopah to Holloman AFB. On July 8, the 37th FW was inactivated and the 415th FS, 416th FS, and 417th FS had all become part of the 49th Fighter Wing
49th Fighter Wing
The 49th Wing is an air combat unit of the United States Air Force and the host unit at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. The 49 WG is part of the Air Combat Command Twelfth Air Force....
. By August 1992, the TTR Airport was largely in caretaker status with many of the facilities mothballed.
A-7D Corsair II
A-7 Corsair II
The Ling-Temco-Vought A-7 Corsair II is a carrier-based subsonic light attack aircraft introduced to replace the United States Navy's Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, initially entering service during the Vietnam War...
. The SLUFF (Short Little Ugly Fat Fellow) was chosen because it demanded about the correct amount of pilot workload expected in the F-117A, was single seat, and therefore would bring all pilots to a common flight training base line. The 4450th TG was the last active USAF unit to fly the A-7D.
A-7 flight operations began in June 1981 concurrent with the very first YF-117A flights. The A-7's wore a unique "LV" tailcode (for Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
) and were based officially at Nellis Air Force Base
Nellis Air Force Base
Nellis Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base, located approximately northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. It is under the jurisdiction of Air Combat Command .-Overview:...
. They were maintained by the 4450th Maintenance Squadron, based at Nellis. Some A-7s operated from Tonopah from the beginning, and care was taken to leave them outside the hangars, so that prowling satellites could see that Tonopah operated nothing more exciting than some Corsairs. There were approximately 20 aircraft, including a couple of A-7K trainers.
In addition to providing an excuse for the 4450th's existence and activities the A-7's were also used to maintain pilot currency, particularly in the early stages when very few production F-117As were available. The pilots learned to fly chase on F-117A test and training flights, perform practice covert deployments, and practice any other purpose that could not be accomplished using F-117As, given the tight restrictions imposed on all F-117A operations. On off-range flights, the pilots talked to the air traffic controllers as if they were in an A-7D Corsair II. Each F-117 aircraft also carried a transponder that indicated to radar operators that it was an A-7.
T-38 Talon
T-38 Talon
The Northrop T-38 Talon is a twin-engine supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first supersonic trainer and is also the most produced. The T-38 remains in service as of 2011 in air forces throughout the world....
and AT-38B Talon trainers.
Many of these "Talons" formerly belonged to the 4447th TS "Red Hats" that flew "acquired" Soviet aircraft at Groom Lake, Nevada. One of the AT-38B Talons even served as a USAF Thunderbird
U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
The Thunderbirds are the air demonstration squadron of the U.S. Air Force , based at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, Nevada. The squadron tours the United States and much of the world, performing aerobatic formation and solo flying in specially marked USAF jet aircraft...
in the 1970s.
Most of the T-38s were reassigned to training units with the disbanding of the 37th FW.
Post 1992: Tonopah nowadays
After 1992, very little was published about what, if any, aircraft were based there. The facility was placed on caretaker status effective 31 December 1992, however the USAF continued to maintain the runway as active along with the navigation aids remaining open to the DOE and the USAF on an as-needed basis.In July 2001, a commercial McDonnell Douglas MD-82 aircraft landed at the Tonopah Test Range airfield due to a cargo fire warning light, according to an ASRS
Aviation Safety Reporting System
The Aviation Safety Reporting System, or ASRS, is the US Federal Aviation Administration's voluntary system that allows pilots and other airplane crew members to confidentially report near misses and close calls in the interest of improving air safety...
report. It departed without incident.
The 30th Reconnaissance Squadron
30th Reconnaissance Squadron
The 30th Reconnaissance Squadron is reconnaissance test squadron assigned to the 432d Air Expeditionary Wing at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada...
, operating Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, was activated at Tonopah in August 2005 as part of the 57th Operations Group
57th Wing
The 57th Wing is an operational unit of the United States Air Force Warfare Center, stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.The 57 WG's mission is to provide well trained and well equipped combat forces ready to deploy into a combat arena to conduct integrated combat operations.-Mission:The 57...
at Nellis. The squadron currently operates the USAF's RQ-170 Sentinel UAVs.
On April 22, 2008, the last of the F-117s were returned to Tonopah to be mothballed. Since the aircraft still contain classified material, the Air Force was not able to mothball them in the normal facilities and will use hangars at Tonopah instead. One aircraft will be left in service at Nellis.
The airfield continues to be used by the DOE in support of its mission at the Tonopah Test Range. The DOE facility supports approximately 15 flights per week for its operations. The remaining flights are in support of the USAF and other organizations at the Tonopah Test Range.
Detachment 3, 53rd Test and Evaluation Group
57th Wing
The 57th Wing is an operational unit of the United States Air Force Warfare Center, stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.The 57 WG's mission is to provide well trained and well equipped combat forces ready to deploy into a combat arena to conduct integrated combat operations.-Mission:The 57...
at Nellis AFB. It later became DET 2, 57th Fighter Wing in October 1991 and DET 2, 57th Wing in April 1993; in October 1996, DET 2, 57th Wing, became Detachment 3 of the 53rd Test and Evaluation Group. It is believed that Air Force Material Command operates MiG-29 Fulcrums and Su-27 Flanker aircraft somewhere in Nevada flying against Fighter Weapons School
Fighter Weapons School
Fighter Weapons School can mean the following:* United States Navy Fighter Weapons School* United States Air Force Fighter Weapons School now the United States Air Force Warfare Center* Fighter Weapons School - a RAF school...
instructors, 422d Test and Evaluation Squadron
422d Test and Evaluation Squadron
The 422d Test and Evaluation Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 53d Test and Evaluation Group, stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada....
aircrews and F-15 Eagle
F-15 Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
and F-16 Fighting Falcon
F-16 Fighting Falcon
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a multirole jet fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force . Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,400 aircraft have been built since...
"Aggressor" aircraft flying from Nellis AFB.
It is known that the USAF continues a Foreign Materiel Acquisition/Exploitation program, although the extent of acquisitions and operations of that program is not available. In March 1991, in the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, a team from the Joint Captured Materiel Exploitation Center arrived at Jalibah Southeast Air Base
Jalibah Southeast Air Base
Jalibah Southeast Air Base is a former Iraqi Air Force base in the Thi Qar Governorate of Iraq. It was captured by Coalition forces during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.-Iraqi Air Force base:...
in Iraq. They returned with a MiG-29 nose, providing Air Force intelligence personnel with a Slot Back I radar and the Fulcrum’s infrared search and tracking system. Later in the decade, Air Force intelligence personnel were able to acquire more complete versions of the MiG-29, the result of spending money rather than fighting a war. In October 1997, the US purchased 21 fighter aircraft from the Republic of Moldova—including the MiG-29UB. According to the National Air and Space Intelligence Center, after "undergoing years of study" and employing "all the [center’s foreign materiel exploitation] resources," the MiG-29 was displayed in front of NASIC headquarters at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
In 1997, the United States purchased 21 Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
n aircraft for evaluation and analysis, under the Cooperative Threat Reduction accord
Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction
The Cooperative Threat Reduction Program is an initiative housed within the Defense Threat Reduction Agency...
. Fourteen were MiG-29Ss, which are equipped with an active radar jammer in its spine and are capable of being armed with nuclear weapons. Part of the United States’ motive to purchase these aircraft was to prevent them from being sold to "rogue states", especially Iran. In late 1997, the MiGs were delivered to the National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Greene and Montgomery counties in the state of Ohio. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is located approximately...
near Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, though many of the former Moldovan MiG-29s are believed to have been scrapped.
In 2003, after the seizure of the Iraqi Air Force
Iraqi Air Force
The Iraqi Air Force or IQAF is the military branch in Iraq responsible for the policing of international borders, surveillance of national assets and aerial operations...
Al-Taqaddum Air Base
Al-Taqaddum Air Base
Al Taqaddum Airbase , or Al Taqaddum AB , , is an airbase that is located in central Iraq, approximately 74 kilometers west of Baghdad, at Habbaniyah. The airfield is served by two runways 13,000 and long. Since 2004, it has been known as Camp Taqaddum...
, an advanced Russian MiG-25 Foxbat was found buried in the sand after an informant tipped off U.S. troops. The MiG was dug out of a massive sand dune near the Al Taqqadum airfield by U.S. Air Force recovery teams. The MiG was reportedly one of over two dozen Iraqi jets buried in the sand, like hidden treasure, waiting to be recovered at a later date.
Contrary to what some in the major media have reported, not all the jets found at captured Iraqi Air Force bases were from the Gulf War era. The Russian-made MiG-25 Foxbat recovered was an advanced reconnaissance version never before seen in the West and was equipped with sophisticated electronic warfare devices. Air Force recovery teams had to use large earth-moving equipment to uncover the MiG, which was over 70 feet long and weighed 25 tons. The advanced electronic reconnaissance version found by the U.S. Air Force is currently in service with the Russian air force.
External links
- F-117A: The Black Jet Website
- Declassified Presentations of the tactical and technical exploitation of the MiG-17 and MiG-21 at Tonopah: