01 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - "A-Lee-Inn" on Promised Land 02 - CntZero <cntzero@primenet - area51.JPL.NASA.GOV ??? 03 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - 1947 UFO Sightings Near Hanford, Washington 04 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - "A-Lee-Inn" on TV show Promised Land 05 - tucker@cc.gatech.edu (Tuc - RE: area51.jpl.nasa.gov 06 - mayor@tiac.net - Area 51 on "Dark Skies" this Saturday on NBC 07 - "A.J. Craddock" <craddock - Zeta Reticuli Star System 08 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - Everything Will Match Up [Loon] 09 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - TRW Tests Laser; Rockwell Contract [Press Releases] 10 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - Reuters Report on Rachel, "UFO Capital of the World" [Article] 11 - PaulMcG@aol.com - Accounting Codes Suggest Secret Navy Aircraft 12 - campbell@ufomind.com (Gl - Responses: Capistrano Site; Area 51 @ JPL; A-14 Plus Aircraft Index
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: "A-Lee-Inn" on Promised Land Date: Tue, 29 Oct 1996 21:35:28 -0800 A fictional "A-Lee-Inn" was featured in tonight's episode of "Promised Land," a TV drama series on CBS. A family crossing the country in a camper finds itself stranded in "Roswell", at a bar/restaurant/motel called the "A-Lee-Inn," which is pretty much an exact replica of the Little A'Le'Inn in Rachel except that the Hollywood design people did a lot better job than the real thing. They put a big saucer out front and filled the bar with a more merchandise than the real Inn has. This fictional version had a radio station in the bar, and the characters, even the loons, were lifeless cliches. Frankly, I'd prefer the real Inn to this sanatized version. As described in TV Guide: "The Greenes take a wrong turn on their way to Denver and end up in Roswell, NM, where they meet a denizen of UFO believers at the A-Lee-Inn Cafe, eagerly awaiting the return of a former astronaut who mysteriously disappeared years before." The plot isn't worth further explanation. Best described as a Brady Bunch sequel. It was mildly amusing to see the A'Le'Inn reproduced so closely, down to the posters on the wall, and a resident alien clearly modeled after our own Ambassador Merlin. Virtually no creativity was added, however, and the moronic script -- something about the characters trying to deal with their pasts -- made it painful to watch. (But watch it I did, looking for any signs of life.) Add it to the anthropology file and forget it. Glenn +------ U F O M I N D -------+ | Glenn Campbell campbell@ufomind.com | | AREA 51 RESEARCH CENTER - Las Vegas & Rachel, Nevada | | UFOs - Gov't Secrets - Philosophy - Psychology | | http://www.ufomind.com Box 448, Rachel, NV 89001 | +------------------------------------------------------+ Message #1
From: CntZero <cntzero@primenet.com> Subject: area51.JPL.NASA.GOV ??? Date: Wed, 30 Oct 1996 08:39:00 -0800 I recently receieved email from a person who claims that there once existed a gov website at http://area51.jpl.nasa.gov which has since disappeared. I did some checking and found that the domain "area51.JPL.NASA.GOV" does exist with and IP of 128.149.109.245 - anybody have any idea what this, or ever visit the site? Is the domain merely a prank? I find it hard to believe that JPL or NASA would actually have an area51 site... +----------------------------------------+ | Pete Roberts cntzero@primenet.com | http://www.primenet.com/~cntzero | System Administrator / Programmer | Hanson Truss, Inc. Chino, CA, USA + Message #2
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: 1947 UFO Sightings Near Hanford, Washington Date: Thu, 31 Oct 1996 08:50:26 -0800 [These postings by Jan Aldrich (jan@cyberzone.net) to the "UFO updates" list is reposted here because Hanford is a sister facility of the Nevada Test Site. -- GC] Richland, Washington is outside the Hanford nuclear facility. In 1947 it was not even an incorporated town and had no local government. Towards, the end of July 1947 a number of officials from the Atomic Energy Commission site at Oak Ridge, TN traveled by airplane to Hanford. A reporter from the the Oak Ridge newspaper went along. When he returned, the reporter wrote up a tongue and cheek story about the trip, and how everyone on it wanted to see a "flying disk." Everyone on the plane was "disk happy" including the pilots. When they stopped at a military base along the route, one of the officers that greeted them made a comment that the trip was probably a "boon-doggle" to look for flying disks. In any case at that time the people at Los Alamos, Richland and Oak Ridge read each others newspaper. The newspapers carried regular news items from the other AEC facilities. Richland, Washington, VILLAGER, 3 July 1947, page 1 'FLYING DISK' ARE SEEN HERE First Noticed by Leo Bernier A Richland chapter was added last week to the mystery of the "flying discs" or "saucers" puzzeling the western states when a village resident, Leo Bernier of 1213 Stevens Drive, reported having seen several of them high in the sky last Tuesday afternoon. "They were going west by southwest around 2 or 2:30," Bernier said, "and were rather silvery and shpaed as though a saucer were seen edgewise." Bernier didn't say much about them until he read in the paper that they had been seen elsewhere. "I was worried that people might just laugh," he said. The disks were extremely far away, near the horizon, but high in the sky, he stated, and even at that distance were traveling as fast as a P-38 might seem to be going if it were just 600 feet high. "They appeared something like a reflection from a plane, but were going too fast for any kind of plane," Bernier said. Various theories have been offered for the phenomum (sic), which has been sighted in at least five areas besides Richland, west of the Mississippi. In clear air, the flash of sunlight from a plane can easily be seen 50 miles. The flash is round, the shape of the sun. Any other reflection from a great distance is apt to be round too. Most puzzling factor in the mystery are (sic) the great speeds. although is is difficutlt for the eye to make a correct esitmate of speeds, and jet planes travel much faster then regular planes. Reports of unusual objects in the sky have been numerous since the war. Atomic bomb and rocket rumors have accounted for most of them. Bernier has his own explanation as good as any. "I believe it may be a visitor from another planet, more developed the ours," he says, "in my opinion we're just beginning to see things this world never dreamed of." Seen Sunday by Neighborhood (Second story) Just to prove that there was something in the sky, a whole neighborhood reported late this week that they had seen the famed "discs" last Sunday afternoon above Richland. A disc was first spotted by James Harbor, 10, of 1417 Johnston, earlier in the week, but he ws having difficulty in getting anyone to believe him, when he saw another one Sunday afternoon, "about 3," while playing with some friends. Jimmy immediately called his mother and several meighbors to view it and prove his story. "When I first came out," reports his mother, Mrs. Thomas Harbour, "the disc seemed straight above, right over the village. It seemed to be hovering. It wavered, then started back and all of a sudden, reversed itself and shot off toward the northeast." The disc wsa bright, but very high in the air, according to Mrs. Harbour. It was round, with a shimmering edge, as though that moved separately from the center. (?) It was silvery, as reported elsewhere, but to Mrs. Harbour seemed to have a tail or a stream of smoke clinging to it. "I couldn't judge how high it was , but I'm sure it was a terrific size," she stated. "The whole neighborhood saw it." Others who saw the disc, according to her, were Walter and Donald Schaeffer, neighbor boys, Mrs. Carl Gibons of 1413 Johnston and Mrs. E. D. Ferguson of 1418 Johnston. Said Mrs. Gibson, "It was real bright and seemed to go fast, but every once in a while it looked like it was turning or something because it twinkled like a star." "It very definitely wasn't a plane. I've never seen anything like it before...It was spinning," she added. Mrs. Ferguson thought of it as spinning, too, but to her it seemed to have a "sort of a halo or circle around it." "It could have been smoke around it which appeared to come from the center or top of the disc," Mrs. Ferguson related. She too agreed that it was shiny, huge in size and very high in the sky. "It didn't move like a plane, more like a balloon except that balloons move smoothly and this was jerky," Mrs. Ferguson reported. She sad (sic) they had to be in a shadow to see it, and that the the whole neightborhood was out. Richland Washington, VILLAGER, 1O July 1947, page 1 FLYING DISCS SEEN AGAIN BY VILLAGERS There must be something to it--but what? That about sums up the attitude of villagers this week as more and more sky viewers all over the country report having seen the now-famed "flying discs." Latest Richland recruit to the discers is Mrs. Nordman of 506 Taylor, who noticed one on Friday, July 4. "We were watching our little girl shooting firecrackers," Mrs. Nordman said, "when all of a sudden we saw it in the sky." Since the report of an unnamed California Institute of Technology scientist, who supposedly stated that the planes might have something to do with experiments in "transmutation of atomic energy," Colonel F. J Clarke, area manager for the AEC, has been busy answering long-distance calls from newspapers. "There's nothing to the report," he stated this week. "The Hanford Engineering Works has nothing to do with the discs." Reports have been coming too thick and fast to be passed off lightly, generally agree that the objects are round or oval, of a saucer-shape. Estimates of their speed vary, and local versions include stories of the discs which stop and turn. They are fast, however, nearly everyone agrees. How high? It's anyone's guess. They were seen here first by Leo Bernier of 1213 Stevens, who sighted them about as soon as anyone in the country. A week ago Sunday, a whole neighborhood and the Harbour home at 1417 Johnston, saw them. Mrs. Nordman's daughter was shooting fireworks in a can, and several of the family were setting around watching the can fly into the air, when they saw the disc. "It was a little bright thing, going fast, and turning over and over," she said. "We never would have noticed if if we hadn't suddenly looked up." She couldn't judge the distance, but the object seemed very high, straight above her house, and heading northeast. Others who saw it with Mrs Nordman were her daughters Patty and Joyce and a neighbor, Marion Krepsky. The 10th July edition of the VILLAGER also contains an editorial about highs that previously caused grabage can lids and sheet metal from roofs to fly off into the sky. The newspaper in Oak Ridge, TN, cited this incident as a possible explanation for ufos." Not one of the most compelling cases in ufology, but if civilian were seeing things just by chance what about the guard force and intelligence services. In 1950 at Oak Ridge there were a large number of ufo reports collected by the FBI, ONI, USAF, OSI, and CIC. The FBI made an effort to facilitate exchange of information among the organizations involved. The attempt at coordination was not completely successful. Some security services had reports that they others did not know about. Also, reports in the local newspaper were ignored. (Here is a good research project. I checked the OAK RIDGER for December 1949, March, April, May and part of October 1950 for ufo reports. A complete check of not only the OAK RIDGER, but all the newspaper in a fifty mile radius of Oak Ridge might reveal interesting information.) Could there be similar document concerning Hanford during the 1947 flap filed away in the Department of Engery's archives and the files of the security forces? There seem to be little information in the 4th Air Force UFO files 1947-1952. However, there are a couple of minor references to Hanford. Jan Aldrich, Project 1947 _______________________________________________ UFO UpDates - Toronto - updates@globalserve.net Operated by Errol Bruce-Knapp - ++ 416-932-0031 An E-Mail Subscription Service for the Study of UFO Related Phenomena Message #3
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: "A-Lee-Inn" on TV show Promised Land Date: Thu, 31 Oct 1996 09:06:46 -0800 [Two Messages...] From: ABaier@MSM.mea.com Date: Wed, 30 Oct 1996 09:27:56 -0800 Imagine my surprise when I found this week's episode of 'Promised Land' set in Roswell, NM. Sorry I didn't have any advanced knowledge of the show, and couldn't post a notice for the group. 'Promised Land' (Tuesdays at 7:00PM CST) is a CBS series about a family (the Greenes) traveling the highways and byways of the good ole US of A. TV veteran Gerald McRaney plays the father. I didn't get the rest of the cast, but his wife, son, and daughter, his mother, and his brother's son, round out the family. Guesting in this episode are: James Brolin, as the 'missing' astronaut, Leon Redbone as a palm reader, John Hawkes as the young DJ of KUFO radio, and Alan Gregory as the stereotypical abductee/nutcase (with cellular antennas on his head). The Greenes were en route to Denver, to visit The coolest thing about the show was the name of the restaurant/ufo museum: the A-LEE-INN CAFE! One subplot concerned the yearly anniversary celebration of the disappearance of the Brolin character, whom we discover is a yearly attendee himself, known to the regulars as 'Coffee'. His personal demon is his inability to deal with his realization of the plight of humanity, which occurred during his moonwalk. Another subplot concerns the McRaney character's personal demon: a childhood incident in which he was unable to rescue his brother, who had fallen into a river. The script was heavy-handed and preachy in it's treatment of the show's message (we all live on Planet Earth and we MUST live together), but the acting and production were surprisingly good, McRaney and Brolin especially. I would have gone for a darker, more revealing treatment of the personal demon angle, with most of the dialog being between the McRaney and Brolin characters, but hey, it's a family show. Area 51 was mentioned, in regards to what I don't recall. So long for now, AL ------------------------- Date: Wed, 30 Oct 1996 11:30:15 -0500 From: Brad Hodges <brad.hodges@generalmedia.com> Subject: Gerald McRaney, UFO skeptic Channel surfing last night (10-29) I stumbled upon a show that was set in a UFO-themed restaurant. Leafing through my TV Guide, I discovered I was watching a show called Promised Land, a spin-off of Touched by an Angel starring Gerald McRaney. This episode, of which I saw only the last twenty minutes, was set in The A-Lee-Inn. However, instead of Rachel, Nevada, the show has relocated the restaurant to Roswell, New Mexico. Anway, from what I saw, McRaney and family were stuck there for some reason, along with UFO believers who were depicted as white trash crackpots (one of them wore antennae, another woman wore ridiculous pink hair curlers). They were awaiting the return of an astronaut, played by James Brolin, who ends up giving a speech about world peace. McRaney angrily tells the gathered that they aren't going to find any answers "Up there, in a spaceship," but he maintains that he's seen an angel. =46uther evidence that the Area 51 phenomenon has saturated American popular culture, even to square, dumb dramas for middle America. If anyone saw the whole show (doubtful) I'd like to hear more about it. Brad Hodges brad.hodges@generalmedia.com Message #4
From: tucker@cc.gatech.edu (Tucker Balch) Subject: RE: area51.jpl.nasa.gov Date: Thu, 31 Oct 1996 13:07:07 -0500 (EST) area51.jpl.nasa.gov is a 486DX-33 running Windows. It's probably sitting on some secretary's desk in the headquarters of JPL. It seems that IP#s at JPL begin with 128.149, or 137.78 then conclude with a subnet and host number. How did I figure that out? I used nslookup as follows: unixprompt> nslookup Default Server: gaia.cc.gatech.edu Address: 130.207.3.8 > set domain=jpl.nasa.gov > set querytype=HINFO > area51 Server: gaia.cc.gatech.edu Address: 130.207.3.8 Non-authoritative answer: area51.jpl.nasa.gov CPU=486DX-33 OS=Dos-Win Authoritative answers can be found from: jpl-mil.JPL.NASA.GOV inet address = 128.149.1.101 elroy.JPL.NASA.GOV inet address = 137.78.80.130 elroy.JPL.NASA.GOV inet address = 137.78.120.2 mx.nsi.NASA.GOV inet address = 128.102.18.31 trantor.umd.edu inet address = 128.8.10.14 iems.JPL.NASA.GOV inet address = 137.79.1.40 > I recently receieved email from a person who claims that there once existed > a gov website at http://area51.jpl.nasa.gov which has since disappeared. I > did some checking and found that the domain "area51.JPL.NASA.GOV" does exist > with and IP of 128.149.109.245 - anybody have any idea what this, or ever > visit the site? Is the domain merely a prank? I find it hard to believe that > JPL or NASA would actually have an area51 site... > +----------------------------------------+ > | Pete Roberts cntzero@primenet.com > | http://www.primenet.com/~cntzero > | System Administrator / Programmer > | Hanson Truss, Inc. Chino, CA, USA > + Message #5
From: mayor@tiac.net Subject: Area 51 on "Dark Skies" this Saturday on NBC Date: Thu, 31 Oct 1996 19:28:10 -0800 So, I'm perusing next week's TV Guide and I see an ad for the NBC series, "Dark Skies" (which I've never seen). What caught my eye was the teaser copy: "Dark Skies" "Howard Hughes, aliens and Area 51 - You've been warned!" The description in the listings describes the episode as such: "Following clues they found in New York, Sayers and Loengard (Megan Ward and Eric Close) head to Las Vegas, where they discover that billionaire Howard Hughes (Madison Mason) has mistaken the Hive conspiracy for a Communist plot..." I may just have to watch this one episode for the novelty factor... 8) ===================================================================== Ken MacGray, Administrator - Virtual Village BBS Central Massachusetts' Premier Online Service 508-368-4222 - email:mayor@tiac.net - http://www.tiac.net/users/mayor Area 51 Images/Lore/News: http://www.tiac.net/users/mayor/a51/ ===================================================================== [That's Sat., Nov. 2 at 8pm ET/PT on NBC. -- GC] Message #6
From: "A.J. Craddock" <craddock@ix.netcom.com> Subject: Zeta Reticuli Star System Date: Fri, 1 Nov 1996 12:51:41 -0800 Subject: Zeta Reticuli Star System Pulled from alt.ufo.reports Tony Craddock ************************************ THE ZETA RETICULI STAR SYSTEM by M. Collins and William Moore REPORTER: "And what planet (do the EBENS <aliens> come) from?" INTELLIGENCE SOURCE CODENAMED "FALCON": "(From) the Zeta Reticuli star group .. (there are) two suns together." Q: "And is this the primary source of the alien visitors here?" A: "Ahh, to the best of my knowledge, yes." Q: "How long does the trip from Zeta Reticuli take....?" A: "They can... do it in about 91 days." Q: "How big is their home planet?" A: "(The) EBEN'S planet is similar to Earth, but the air is a bit thinner and contains a higher proportion of Argon and Helium. Also, the average temperature is a bit cooler than here. They like our high mountain regions where the air is thinner and the temperature is cooler. They can't stand a lot of heat. Q: "Now, can we get into describing the physical conditions and characteristics of the aliens?" A: "(They are) creature(s) about 3'4" to 3'8" tall. Their eyes are extremely large, almost insect style (with) a couple of different inner lids....Their skin structure is extremely ahhh... it's a very elastic skin, and hard. Probably hardened from their sun." Excerpted from interviews conducted with U.S. intelligence agent codenamed "Falcon" in March, 1984 and February, 1987. Evidence gleaned from both the Betty and Barney Hill abduction case and from intelligence sources (including "Falcon", above) has suggested that the home of at least one group of supposed alien 'visitors" to Earth may well be the Zeta Reticuli system, a close pair of companion stars (two stars traveling together in the same direction at the same speed, as opposed to a double or binary star system wherein one star orbits the other) some 37 light years distant. Although this information is NOT scientifically provable, it can be used to test the hypothesis that Zeta Reticuli has all the ingredients (except for positive proof of planets) to support intelligent life at an advanced stage of development. The prime source of information about these stars is L. DaSilva and R. Foy's paper "Zeta 1 and Zeta 2 Reticuli: A Puzzling Solar-Type Twin System", which can be found in Astronomy and Astrophysics (177, 204-216 <1987>). The two stars, Zeta 1 and Zeta 2, are located in the southern constellation of Reticulum (the net) and are thus never visible to most of the northern hemisphere. Both are classed as old disk population II stars whose age is between six to eight billion years. There is every indication that both had a common origin and are part of a relatively near-by old moving group (or loose cluster) of stars which was first defined in 1958 and is known as the Zeta Hercules group. Our own Sun has an estimated age of only five billion years and is classed spectroscopically as a G-0 star (yellow-orange dwarf). Zeta 1 and Zeta 2 are classed as G-2 and G-1 respectively, with luminosities ("L") of 0.7 and 0.9 (the Sun being L=l.O). This means that both Zeta 1 and Zeta 2 are very Sun-like and could well possess solar systems much like our own. In their highly technical paper, DaSilva and Foy offer two very important conclusions about these stars which radically contradict earlier findings. These are that neither star is metal-deficient and that neither is a close binary (or double). Earlier evidence (published by Bonneau et al., 1980) identifying Zeta 2 as a very close binary turns out to have been mistaken (Bonneau and Foy, 1986). The puzzling aspects of these "close" stars (.1 light year apart) center around discoveries of higher than expected gravity and ultraviolet output when compared to their apparently normal metal content (i.e. not metal-poor). The ultraviolet excess and kinematic (proper motion and orbit) data suggest that these two stars belong to the old population II stars as mentioned earlier; yet the apparent high gravity figure seems more typical of an unevolved, metal-poor condition. Since DaSilva and Foy's work resulted in strong confirmation of a Sun-like (or "normal") metal content for these stars, they began to look elsewhere for an explanation of the gravity paradox. The answer came with the discovery of an apparent overabundance of helium (twice as much as our own Sun) in the stellar photospheres. This, when worked into the calculations, not only explained the high gravity, but also accounted for the observed problem of the stars' high ultraviolet output but relatively low overall luminosity. Another effect of the helium abundance would be to slow the process of stellar evolution across the main sequence. Additionally, it should be noted that Zeta 1 was one of the first stars ever to be used as a solar analog by astronomers. What might these findings signify as far as Zeta 1 and/or Zeta 2 possessing planets with advanced intelligent life? Let's make a list of the strong points which support this idea: (1)Both Zeta 1 and Zeta 2 are solar, or Sun-like stars. (If one imagines a spherical section of our galaxy with a radius of 50 light years and centered upon our Sun, only one star out of every eleven contained therein will have Sun-like characteristics.) (2) The previous objection that one and perhaps both stars appeared to be close binaries has now been swept away. Stable planetary orbits in the so-called eco-zone (i.e. close enough to the central fire to produce conditions conducive to life) are more probable around single stars than in binary systems. (It is for precisely this reason that our Sun's nearest neighbor, Alpha Centuri <Rigel Kent>, is considered an unlikely candidate for life-giving planets even though the main star of that multiple system is a class G-4 sun.) (3) Both Zeta 1 and Zeta 2 have an average age of between six and eight billion years. This makes them from one to three billion years older than our Sun and suggests that any life on planets associated with them could be much further along in its evolutionary process than we are. (4) In many reported UFO abduction cases, the "visitors" have been described as having a thick epidermis and multiple eyelids. This is precisely the sort of adaptation one would expect for creatures who evolved on a planet whose sun had a high ultraviolet output. Curiously enough, these characteristics were also reported by the intelligence source codenamed "Falcon" as early as 1981. On the negative side, it must be admitted that there is no direct observational evidence of planets around either Zeta 1 or Zeta 2. However, a Canadian group reported that a Jupiter-sized planet appears to exist in orbit around Tau Ceti, a Sun-like star only about 11 light years away. Those readers familiar with the star map developed by Marjorie Fish based upon information from the Barney and Betty Hill UFO abduction case, will recall that Tau Ceti was identified as one of the stars on that map. ********************************************** ********************************************** * UNUSUAL RESEARCH * * * * http://users1.ee.net/pmason/index.html * ********************************************** ********************************************** Message #7
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: Everything Will Match Up [Loon] Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 17:17:28 -0800 Subj: 51 Date: Wed, Oct 23, 1996 4:57 PM PDT From: __________@aol.com To: psychospy@aol.com Dear Glenn: THIS IS A ONE TIME MESSAGE This concerns area 51. There is a secret aircraft carrier U.S.S. Langley. Home port is Somewhere near eastern moscow western japan coast. A naval airwing flies off of this carrier. Dark wing. VF 739 and VF 741. I dont know the rest of the air wing off of this carrier. Each squardon has 20 aircraft or spacecraft which are capable of air and space flight. They can fly as fast as mach 8 in earth's atmosphere. They train and were developed at groom lake. These aircraft are part of the star wars network. Star wars is against alien threat not soviet. The Soviets are allies with us in this program. I hope this clears things up for you I have said too much. Ten more of these carriers are being developed they are bigger than the Nimtz class. These carriers also will be capable of space flight in five years. THIS IS NO JOKE DO NOT CONTACT ME. EVERY THING WILL MATCH UP Message #8
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: TRW Tests Laser; Rockwell Contract [Press Releases] Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 17:40:57 -0800 [Two press releases regarding Star Wars-type stuff from http://www.prnewswire.com via cloudrider@aol.com] [Anyone know about TRW's "Capistrano Test Site"? -- GC] ------------------ ALPHA LASER COMPLETES HIGH-ENERGY LASING TEST... "STAR WARS" REDONDO BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 7, 1996--In a demonstration of the reliability and robustness of its high-energy laser systems, TRW (NYSE: TRW) has successfully completed a full-power test of its megawatt-class Alpha chemical laser. The test strengthens the nation's technological foundation for a future Space-Based Laser (SBL) missile defense system. The 5-second, full duration test -- the 12th test since Alpha was first fired in 1989 -- was performed on Sept. 18 at TRW's Capistrano Test Site near San Clemente, Calif. It marks the first time that the Alpha laser has been fired since Department of Defense (DoD) funding cuts put the laser in a "preservation" or storage mode more than two years ago. In addition to extending TRW's record of high energy laser successes, the Alpha test lays groundwork for the next phase of the Alpha LAMP Integration (ALI) program, an SBL technology development effort run by the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO). That next phase, currently scheduled for spring 1997, will integrate and test the high-power technologies, including Alpha, which comprise the prototype SBL system. "We are extremely pleased with the results of the recent Alpha laser test," said Joanne Maguire, vice president and general manager of TRW's Space & Technology Division, a leading developer of laser-based defense systems. "The fact that we could fire it successfully on the first try after a 25-month testing hiatus speaks strongly to the quality of the original laser design. We believe that data from this test will prove invaluable to BMDO and Lockheed Martin, the ALI prime contractor, as they define and optimize the test plan for the ALI program." Alpha is a high-energy, space-compatible, hydrogen fluoride laser that TRW developed for the DoD beginning in the early 1980s. In the 11 previous Alpha tests at Capistrano, TRW has demonstrated the feasibility of using space-based chemical lasers to defend against ballistic missile attacks. The most recent test was completed under TRW's current $30 million Alpha Laser Optimization (ALO) contract with BMDO. The ALI program will bring together three major SBL high-power subsystems to assess their performance as an integrated unit: the TRW-developed Alpha chemical laser; a four-meter diameter Large Advanced Mirror Program (LAMP) beam projection telescope developed by Litton Itek (recently acquired by Hughes Danbury Optical Systems); and the Large Optics Demonstration Experiment (LODE) beam control system developed by Lockheed Martin. Together, these elements will demonstrate the generation, stabilization and projection of a high-power laser beam in a simulated space environment at TRW's Capistrano test facility. According to Pat Pomphrey, TRW's ALO program manager, the Alpha laser has undergone routine preservation procedures for the past two years as part of the BMDO-sponsored ALO program. These procedures, which included cycling of the laser's valves, pumps, and electronic systems, have kept the laser at an operating level that enabled a straightforward "reactivation." The reactivation process began early in spring 1996 when increased laser testing funds became available. "Thanks to BMDO's preservation program and TRW's thorough understanding of laser test processes, we were successful in testing Alpha precisely on schedule," said Pomphrey. TRW Space & Electronics Group (S&EG), an operating unit of Cleveland, Ohio-based TRW Inc., has been engaged in the research and development of lasers since 1961. Today, the group designs and develops a variety of high-energy chemical lasers for space, ground, and airborne applications, including hydrogen fluoride (HF), deuterium fluoride (DF), and chemical oxygen iodine (COIL) lasers. The group also produces solid-state lasers for military and industrial applications. TRW Inc., provides advanced technology products and services for the automotive and space and defense markets worldwide. Its 1995 sales totaled approximately $10 billion. CONTACT: TRW - A. Brooks McKinney, 310/814-8177 ------------ Rockwell team selected for space-based infrared system.... DOWNEY, Calif., Oct. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Rockwell (NYSE: ROK) today announced its Rockwell/Lockheed Martin team has been selected by the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), Los Angeles, for the Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Demonstration/Validation phase contract. The $179 million contract includes the design, development, test, launch and on-orbit operations of a flight experiment satellite and extends through 1999. The Demonstration/Validation phase contract also includes the development and test of ground demonstration sensors and processors. Rockwell's Space Systems Division is the prime contractor, responsible for systems engineering and flight experiment operations. The satellite sensors will be built by Rockwell's Autonetics & Missile Systems Division, Anaheim, Calif., and the spacecraft bus and launch vehicle will be constructed by Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space, Sunnyvale, Calif. Additionally, Lockheed Martin Federal Systems, Boulder, Colo., will develop the ground segment. "We are extremely pleased at receiving this important contract award, which continues the expansion of our satellite business base and focuses our expertise in the development of sophisticated satellite systems," said Robert G. Minor, president of Rockwell's Space Systems Division. "Once again we have demonstrated the success of a fine team effort in achieving a contract win that will enable us to demonstrate a system that is vital to our nation's defense," said Robert M. Glaysher, vice president and general manager of Rockwell's Satellite & Space Defense Systems. "The results of this effort will place our team in a favorable position to compete for the EMD (engineering, manufacturing and design) phase of the Space and Missile Tracking System, a constellation of LEO satellites that will provide world- wide detection and highly accurate tracking of missiles in support of overall ballistic missile defense." Work on the contract is scheduled to begin this month. Rockwell will make extensive use of commercial practices and will adapt existing space-qualified components and subsystems in the design process. For the flight experiment satellite, the team will use a standard LM700 bus, a version of which has also been used on the IRIDIUM program. The potential for future cost and schedule reductions will also be demonstrated during the execution of this demonstration/validation contract, with the goal of validating these innovative approaches. The flight experiment satellite is currently scheduled to be delivered in less than 27 months. Rockwell's Aerospace and Defense businesses, with annual sales of approximately $3 billion, are world leaders in human space systems; space power and propulsion; satellites; missile defense systems; aircraft and aerostructures; aircraft modernization; guidance and navigation; command, control and communications; ship systems; tactical missiles; and sensors. Pending approvals in late 1996, these units will become Boeing North American Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company. SOURCE Rockwell Message #9
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: Reuters Report on Rachel, "UFO Capital of the World" [Article] Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 17:41:07 -0800 [The usual drivel. I've got to watch what Harold says in the Research Center. "Views expressed about the end of the Millenium are not necessarily those of the Research Center." Business is hardly "blooming" in Rachel. The town is still as "nowhere" as it has ever been. "Hundreds of visitors" a year is about right, and that doesn't mean much in dollar terms. -- GC] -------------------------- BUSINESS BLOOMS FOR DESERT UFO CAPITAL OF WORLD RACHEL, Nevada (Reuters) -- Out in the desert wastelands, a small group of people believe they are close to a secret so devastating that it would, if revealed, mean the end of government and the collapse of religions around the globe. Until a few years ago, Rachel was just a small, windblown community of people living in trailers and shacks close to a top-secret U.S. air force base in the mountains of central Nevada. Now it is the self-proclaimed UFO (Unidentified Flying Object) capital of the world and draws hundreds of visitors from many countries every year, hoping to glimpse strange lights and objects in the night sky. Claims that the nearby U.S. base, known as Area 51, houses alien spacecraft recovered by the military have touched a chord with people who believe we are not alone in the universe and that there is a murky government conspiracy to hide the truth. As the millennium approaches, popular television series such as ``The X Files'' and films like this year's blockbuster ``Independence Day,'' about an alien invasion, reflect growing interest in the theme. For Rachel, with a population of just 100 people, it means that business is suddenly booming -- as it has done for years in the gambling mecca of Las Vegas more than 100 miles (160 km) to the south. Outside ``The Little A-le-Inn,'' Rachel's only motel on its single street, signs welcome UFOs and their crews. Inside, the menu offers ``Alienburgers'' and the walls are covered with photographs from around the world of supposed sightings of spacecraft. A group of men sit at the bar drinking beer, earnestly discussing evil alien plans to deprive our planet of its atmosphere. Chuck Clark, an astronomer who has written a guide to the area, unfolds a map of the secret air force base which is also known as ``Dreamland'' and tells tales of aircraft moving at impossible speeds between the mountains at each end of the desert valley. ``If the authorities were completely open about it, the government would fall, the economy would collapse, religions would go crazy,'' he explains. ``Think about the implications.'' The stories started in earnest in 1989, when a former U.S. government physicist said he had been researching the properties of an alien spaceship at the base. Some believe it was the craft which was said to have crashed at Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947. The Pentagon refuses all comment on the remote, closely guarded facility. Military specialists say it has been used to test new and secret aircraft, such as the Stealth bomber, and that these account for most or all of the supposed UFO sightings. This does nothing to shake the faith of the believers, who spend their time comparing notes on the Internet and say the U.S. military has simply learned to incorporate captured alien technology into its most advanced planes. Pat Travis, 53, runs ``The Little A-le-Inn'' with her husband and says the motel's seven rooms are full for most of the year. They do well from selling T-shirts, baseball caps, coffee mugs and other tourist paraphernalia. ``We get people from all over but it's not just business. There are strange things going on round here and some baffling questions,'' she says. ``The government started off lying about it and now they have to keep on lying.'' UFO sightings have been reported at a local rancher's mailbox up the road towards the base. A man from California, who says he is an alien ambassador in human form, visits Rachel several times a year. Others come with claims of alien abduction. There are grainy photographs of the complex of hangars and buildings that make up Area 51 from several years ago, although guards now prevent tourists from making their way along rough tracks to the mountain ridge from where the base can be observed. Harold Singer, 34, helps run the Area 51 research centre in Rachel -- a trailer filled with maps, satellite photographs and information. ``It's growing more popular because of the end of the millennium,'' he says. ``Every thousand years or so, people say the world is going to end, they look for answers elsewhere.'' His friend, Marcus Pizzuti, is an earnest artist who makes model aliens for the tourists. Dressed in army fatigues and wearing a pistol, Pizzuti lives in a tiny shack with his collection of pet desert lizards, boxes of the cigars he loves to smoke and a picture of his mother on a shelf. Asked to explain why his model aliens resemble human form -- even though they have larger, bald heads -- he has a ready answer. ``I think that we humans were made in their image, that they made us,'' he says. ``These beings travel through the cosmos, creating new races.'' So far, the only craft to have landed in Rachel is an F-16 fighter that crashed near someone's trailer during NATO wargames a few years ago. The only hint of danger comes from cattle which occasionally wander on to the road and into the path of oncoming cars. The people here have yet to find that elusive visitor from another planet, but at least now they can make a living. The state government of Nevada wants to cash in on the UFO tourist boom as well; it has designated the road that runs past Rachel as ``The Extra-Terrestrial Highway'' and put up signs showing flying saucers. Experts on UFOs meet here for regular conferences and the stars of ``Independence Day'' visited earlier this year as part of the huge publicity drive for the film, leaving a commemorative plaque behind. ``Man, you should have seen this place before the UFO thing,'' says Singer. ``There wasn't nothing here. Nothing at all.'' REUTER@ [Via IUFO list <Iufo@alterzone.com>, 11/2/96 Date unknown, but probabaly recent.] Message #10
From: PaulMcG@aol.com Subject: Accounting Codes Suggest Secret Navy Aircraft Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 23:07:27 -0800 I have been doing the research so that I can put together a list of classified U.S. military programs in the FY 1997 budget -- this should be done in a week or so. In a Department of Defense document, I found an accounting code for a new Navy aircraft I was not aware of. There was a sequence, in historical order, of FRICs (Force Resource Identification Codes) for Navy attack aircraft, part of which looked like this: CODE TITLE ---- ----- 4064 A-6E 4065 A-6F 4066 A-6G 4068 A-7A 4069 A-7B 4071 A-7C 4072 A-7E 4073 F/A-18 4074 A-12 4075 A-14 Plus So, just what is an "A-14 Plus" ?? This is a designation I've never seen before. The A-12 Avenger II was the Navy's Stealth attack aircraft that got cancelled and resulted in Congressional hearings a couple of years ago. Given the horrible safety record of the F-14, I'm hoping it's not a new attack version of the F-14. (Wouldn't that be referred to as a "F/A-14" ??) Or, is it a new, secret aircraft being flown at a place like Groom Lake, Nevada? Anybody know what aircraft "A-14 Plus" refers to?? Paul McGinnis / PaulMcG@aol.com http://www.frogi.org/secrecy.html [military secrecy site] Message #11
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas) Subject: Responses: Capistrano Site; Area 51 @ JPL; A-14 Plus Aircraft Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 06:34:05 -0800 TRW CAPISTRANO SITE ON WWW Date: Sat, 02 Nov 1996 20:29:05 -0600 From: Dave B <bethland@ix.netcom.com> To: "Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas" <campbell@ufomind.com> Subject: Re: AREA 51: TRW Tests Laser; Rockwell Contract [Press Releases] > [Anyone know about TRW's "Capistrano Test Site"? -- GC] How about Paul McGinnis' TRW Capistrano Test Site Web page? http://members.aol.com/paulmcg/TRW-CTS.html It's been almost a year since he visited there; perhaps a second look would be worthwhile. Dave B in Houston <bethland@ix.netcom.com> ---------------------- "AREA 51" DOMAIN AT JPL Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 10:19:04 +0000 (GMT) From: Rob Quagliozzi <root@dircon.co.uk> To: Tucker Balch <tucker@cc.gatech.edu> cc: area51@lists.best.com Subject: Re: AREA 51: RE: area51.jpl.nasa.gov On Thu, 31 Oct 1996, Tucker Balch wrote: > area51.jpl.nasa.gov is a 486DX-33 running Windows. It's probably sitting > on some secretary's desk in the headquarters of JPL. If it's any use, I ftp'd to area51.jpl.nasa.gov, (login: exchange pass: exchange - the only public access account). It's an account owned by KidSat, which is exactly what it says: a *Kid* space / exploration project run by NASA. Being over the age of consent now, I feel somewhat lacking in the school project department (which is what this KidSat project is aimed at). Rob ---------------------- A-14 PLUS COULD BE "F-14 PLUS" [The following responses spilled over to us from Skunkworks, since Paul McGinnis' message was cross-posted there. --GC] From: "Frank Markus" <fmarkus@pipeline.com> Subject: Re: secret Navy aircraft ?? Date: Sun, 3 Nov 1996 08:12:21 -0500 > So, just what is an "A-14 Plus" ?? This is a designation I've never seen > before. The A-12 Avenger II was the Navy's Stealth attack aircraft that got > cancelled and resulted in Congressional hearings a couple of years ago. Given > the horrible safety record of the F-14, I'm hoping it's not a new attack > version of the F-14. (Wouldn't that be referred to as a "F/A-14" ??) Or, is > it a new, secret aircraft being flown at a place like Groom Lake, Nevada? > Anybody know what aircraft "A-14 Plus" refers to?? I seem to recall seeing "F-14 Plus" being used to describe a re-engined version of the F-14 proposed by Grumman. The "plus" in the A-14 Plus implies strongly that it is an upgrade of an existing airframe. Based on these considerations, I suspect that the aircraft is a re-engined F-14 that is tasked for bombing and perhaps also undertake "Wild Weasel" missions. ---------------------- From: "Earl Needham, KD5XB, in Clovis, NM" <needhame@3lefties.com> Subject: re: secret Navy aircraft ?? Date: Sun, 3 Nov 1996 07:52:52 -0800 > So, just what is an "A-14 Plus" ?? I'm just guessing, but I suspect a misprint. I *HAVE* heard of the F-14 Plus once or twice -- seems it was either new engines or new avionics. It's been a while, so I don't remember specifics anymore. ---------------------- Date: Sun, 03 Nov 1996 22:34:52 -0500 From: Gary James Harris <gharris2@mail.idt.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 I have heard of an F-14 ground attack variant under development called the "Bombcat." It is intended as an interm replacement for the A6 until the F-18E/F is in production. ---------------------- [The above postings start to illustrate the difference been the Area 51 list and the Skunkworks lists. At Skunkworks, they are really into military hardware, whereas the Area 51 list, we are more interested in organizations and cracking the bigger mysteries of Our Secret Base (OSB). At the Area 51 list, we are interested only in _speculative_ aircraft that _might_ be flying at OSB. Once the craft become proven, like the F117A, we are not interested in the hardware anymore, only the human history of it. --GC] Message #12
Sponsored by the Area 51 Research Center (www.ufomind.com)
Created: 4 Nov 1996