Message posted by Magoo on July 16, 2000 at 18:50:15 EST:
Let's look at the evidence... The first description was of an object that was 50' long and 20' high. It was also described as being rectangular in shape and covered with a camouflaged tarpaulin. The width of the object was not mentioned...did it hang over the sides of the trailer or was it wholly within? The size of the cargo certainly suggests a possible aircraft cargo...the length and height are similar to that of an F-16, but could also be a large UAV/UCAV, or a Blackhawk size helo. It may be a small scale 'demonstrator' for a larger aircraft (like 'Have Blue' was for the F-117). It could also be a component of a larger aircraft. However, it could also be almost anything else you'd like to speculate about! The escort of 4 cammo jeeps suggests that the cargo had some degree of sensitivity, however I'm not aware of the 'normal' escort provisions made at Groom for these trucks. Joerg, is this 'abnormal'? Did the jeeps come all the way with the truck, or did they just come out to escort it the last few miles down GLR? The fact that it came in via GLR rather than through the NTS or via the Rachel gate also suggests something unusual, but is probably more a routing issue related to the cargo's point of origin rather than anything else. The cargo may have been required at Groom urgently, or it may have come up from Nellis. I agree that through the NTS is probably the most direct route, but there would be more check points (read - stops) and the roads may not be as good that way (I'll leave that one to the local experts). It is unlikely to be the same helo that was trucked out a few months ago. They probably would have replaced that one with another from the same parent squadron, and rotated the damaged one back in to the regular fleet. Unless of course it had some 'special' capabilities or equipment that were specific to the Groom based helos. I can't really imagine what that might be, except perhaps being equipped with 'special' radios that operate outside normal frequencies. Even if it were the same helo, it is more likely to have been flown back in rather than trucked, as I imagine the support equipment and personnel required at Groom to reassemble it would be 'minimal'. That's my 40 cents worth anyway. Magoo
In Reply to: Re: Flatbed Truck on Groom Lake Road, 7/6/2000, 5pm posted by Joerg (Webmaster) on July 16, 2000 at 16:45:35 EST:
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