lspencer534
08-16-2013, 6:53pm
Area 51 in Nevada has long been the subject of wild conspiracy theories about extraterrestrials, time travel and alien autopsies, but newly released declassified documents from the CIA finally acknowledge its existence.
The report does not detail the sensational stories that have played out in pop culture for decades, but states that Area 51 was started as a testing site for the government's U-2 spy plane.
Officials and former employees have previously acknowledged in passing the existence of the facility and how it was used for testing U-2 planes, but this is the first time the U.S. government has openly referred to Area 51 and given specifics on its operations. The report also features a map of the area.
It makes no reference to the status of Area 51 after 1974.
"High-altitude testing of the U-2 soon led to an unexpected side effect -- a tremendous increase in reports of unidentified flying objects (UFOs)," the report states.
Air Force investigators then attempted to explain such sightings by linking them to natural phenomena, the report says.
Well...I'm certainly satisfied with that explanation....
Area 51 Revealed in CIA Spy Plane Documents - Yahoo! (http://gma.yahoo.com/area-51-revealed-cia-spy-plane-documents-115407496--abc-news-topstories.html)
The report does not detail the sensational stories that have played out in pop culture for decades, but states that Area 51 was started as a testing site for the government's U-2 spy plane.
Officials and former employees have previously acknowledged in passing the existence of the facility and how it was used for testing U-2 planes, but this is the first time the U.S. government has openly referred to Area 51 and given specifics on its operations. The report also features a map of the area.
It makes no reference to the status of Area 51 after 1974.
"High-altitude testing of the U-2 soon led to an unexpected side effect -- a tremendous increase in reports of unidentified flying objects (UFOs)," the report states.
Air Force investigators then attempted to explain such sightings by linking them to natural phenomena, the report says.
Well...I'm certainly satisfied with that explanation....
Area 51 Revealed in CIA Spy Plane Documents - Yahoo! (http://gma.yahoo.com/area-51-revealed-cia-spy-plane-documents-115407496--abc-news-topstories.html)