On this page: Detachment 3, Air Force Flight Test Center | Local Documents | Land Holdings in Nevada | External Links (Unofficial) | External Links (Official)

DET 3 AFFTC

Detachment 3, Air Force Flight Test Center

Presumed Operator of Area 51

The Air Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC), headquartered at Edwards Air Force Base, is the presumed operator of the secret air base at Groom Lake (Area 51). This assumption is drawn because "AFFTC" appears on many documents regarding base security and land use, and known Groom Lake alumni claim AFFTC credentials. AFFTC is a logical master because the Groom Lake base was founded for the testing of secret aircraft -- initially the U-2 -- and Edwards is responsible for that function. Groom Lake is Detachment 3 (DET 3) of AFFTC. Det. 3 Personnel often claim to have worked at Nellis Air Force base or "Pittman Station," a now-defunct post office in Henderson, Nevada. [GC 8/96]

Local Documents

Stored on this server. For documents on other servers see External Links below.

Connections
- Cammo Dudes connected to AFFTC in Desert Rat #35
- Cammo Dude List and Photos
- Basecamp Airfield, northwest of Groom Lake, is apparently controlled by AFFTC.
Alumni
- NASA Astronaut Roy D. Bridges, Jr. -- Was "Assistant Director of Plans" at Det. 3 of AFFTC/Nellis between Nov. 1979 and July 1980. Philips Lab Profile [Original Site], NASA Profile (out of date) [Original Site]
- NASA Astronaut Candidate Carl E. Walz. See article in Desert Rat #36
Related Organizations
- Edwards Air Force Base. AFFTC Headquarters.
- Area51. Aircraft testing base at Groom Lake.
  - Cammo Dudes. DET 3 SP - Area 51 perimeter security force.
- Nellis Air Force Base & Range. Provides cover and support.
Articles
- "Aviation Archeologists" hunt for plane wrecks near Edwards AFB. Air & Space, Feb./March 1995

Land Holdings in Nevada

According to the 1994 environmental impact study of Edwards AFB [Reported by Xelex@aol.com] 18 off-base properties are owned by the Air Force Flight Test Center, including the following:

Bald Mtn., NV (in Groom Mtn. Range overlooking Area 51): 3 acres, 1971 to present, Mirowave Radar Annex
Beatty, NV: 32 acres, 1959 to present, Aircraft Test Research Facility
Bishop, CA: 62 acres, 1966 to present, Test Site
Coyote Flats (SW of Bishop): 642 acres, 1965 to present, Test Site
Also included are a string of microwave radar annexes and microwave relays running from Goshute, NV to Mt. Pinos, CA which were established in 1971 and 1972. Four missile tracking annexes in California are included.

External Links (Unofficial)

All stored on other servers

List of Air Force units with numbers higher than 1000 includes several entries for AFFTC.
Edwards AFB Profile & Statistics from Military City. (Introductory information for military personnel.)
Aerospace in the Antelope Valley (CA) from Aeronet.
Web searches
- Search for "AFFTC": Metacrawler | Altavista
- Search for "AFFTC Nellis": Metacrawler | Altavista
- Search for "AFFTC Pittman": Metacrawler

External Links (Official)

All stored on other servers

Chain of Command: AFFTC at Edwards reports to Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. AFMC Organization list
AFFTC Museum
Nellis Air Force Base
- Nellis Organizations. Contains no reference to AFFTC.
Edwards Air Force Base
- Edwards Air Force Base home page
- Air Force Flight Test Center
  - Time Space Position Information
- Dryden Flight Research Center (NASA)
Contractors
- Science Applications International Corp, Test & Evaluation Group.

Web Search
Sections Below: Books | Topics | General | Options | Footer

Topics Other index pages on this server

Link page for AFFTC@ <#1>

General Links

Former Worker at Air Force Flight Test Center+ - "Guys at AFFTC aren't smart enough to run the coverup on Area 51." (21 lines) - Message - By Anonymous - Published: 7/17/97 - Source: Area 51 (Mailing List) [Posted by Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas] <7/17/97 #2>
Underground hangars at Edwards, etc. [3 msgs]+ (101 lines) - Message - Published: 8/5/97 - Source: Area 51 (Mailing List) [Posted by Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas] <8/5/97 #3>
AFFTC Directorate of Contracting, AFFTC/PKM - Agency page for the AFFTC/PKM, which manages civilian contractors for AFFTC - Official <8/5/97 #5>
- Assigned Contracts - Listing of AFFTC/PKM approved contractors and their assigned AFFTC/PKM contact people - Official <8/5/97 #5.1>
- AFFTC/PKM Division History - Great little page with DET 3 reference, acquisition of Plant 42 contract, and other neat AFFTC events! (1 pages) - Official <8/5/97 #5.2>
- AIL Antenna Systems - Listed contractor for AFFTC. Subsidiary of Eaton Corp. Radar/antenna systems. <8/8/97 #5.3>
- Calspan SRL Corporation - Listed contractor for AFFTC. Aerospace R&D, engineering, consulting. - Official <8/8/97 #5.4>
- Sverdrup Services - Listed contractor for AFFTC. Giant industrial/military construction firm. Good with concrete... Site is a tour of their shared history with the USAF. - Official <8/8/97 #5.5>
- Symvionics Inc. - Listed Contractor for AFFTC. Advanced weapons training systems and related technologies. - Official <8/8/97 #5.6>
- Tybrin Corporation - Listed contractor for AFFTC. Flight test/mission planning services; nuclear & non-nuclear weapons delivery. - Official <8/8/97 #5.7>
Astronaut Bio Suggests Area 51 is AFFTC DET 3+ - Research report - By Glenn Campbell - Published: 6/17/96 - Source: Groom Lake Desert Rat <8/19/97 #6>
Chris' web site for Area 51 - A great resource for Area 51 <4/8/99 #7>

Books from our Catalog Listed in Random Order

Edwards Air Force Base : Experimental Flight Test Center by Steve Pace - $24.95

Dark Eagles: A History of Top Secret U S Aircraft Programs by Curtis Peebles - $19.95

Aurora: The Pentagon's Secret Spyplane by Bill Sweetman - $10.95

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Created: 8/7/96