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British Army, Navy and Air Force Bases

ENGLAND

BEDFORDSHIRE:
RAF Chicksands ........... USAF SatCom Facility. RAF Sigs/Photo Interp
Army Chicksands ....... H.Q. of Intelligence Corps,Def Intell & Security Centre (D.I.S.C.).
RAF Cardington ... Non-operational airfield. Retains former airship hangars.
RAF Henlow ......................... Electronics - HQ CSE + Provost and Security Services
RAF Stanbridge ............. RAF Logistics Computer Centre. Sat of Henlow
Institute of Technology ..................................................... Cranfield
DERA [Defense Evaluation & Research Agency] ................. Bedford. [MOD]

BERKSHIRE:
Atomic Weapons Research Establishment .............................. Aldermaston
Atomic Energy Commission ........................................... Harwell
RAF Bracknell ............... Temp site for Joint Service Command. Closure 2000
RAF Thatcham ................................................... UK Natl Dist Agency
Royal Naval Base .................................. Bush Barn
Army ........................ Arborfield Garrison. Mostly training & support
Unspecified base (secret) ................................... Henley, near Reading
Unspecified Base (secret) ......................... Watchfield
Welford ... NW of Newbury. Returned to OS map after 50 yrs. Poss. [u/gnd?] weapons store

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE:
Army ..................................................................... Cheddington
Rocket Propulsion Establishment Research Centre ................................... Westcott
RAF Halton ........................... Training + Guided Weapons School
RAF High Wycombe (ADOC HQ Strike Command) .... #1 Grp: strike/attack

CAMBRIDGESHIRE:
Army ................................... Bassingbourn
RAF Brampton .......................... Wyton. HQ Logistics Command
RAF / USAF Molesworth ..................... Molesworth
RAF / USAF Upwood ............................ Upwood
RAF Wittering ......... nr Peterborough, No's 1+20 Sqn's, Harrier GR.7s & T10s

CORNWALL:
GCHQ / NSA Morwenstow ........ Joint operated SatCom monitoring station
Portreath ......... Sat of St Mawgan. No.405 Sigs Unit (Navigation Air Defence Radar Station)
Predannack ................... Satellite of RNAS Culdrose. No.626 V.G.S. - Viking TX.1. [RN]
RAF St Mawgan .... nr Newquay. No.3 Maritime HQ, Tornados, Nimrods + SAR Sea King HAR3s
RNAS Culdrose ..... Helston. Largest heli base in W. Europe. 5 heli sq + [80 a/c in all]
HMS Raleigh ........ Torpoint. RN basic training centre
Goonhilly Downs ......................... Satellite Communications ( BT + ? )

CUMBRIA:
RAF Brampton .......................... Subsidary Log Comm units etc
RAF Spadeadam ............. Electronic Warfare Tactics Range (not strictly a base)
DERA Eskmeals ...... nr Sellafield. Weapons testing facility & still operational

DEVON:
RAF Chivenor ..... Braunton. Marines. No.s 624/22 Sqn + SAR Sea King Helicopters
HM Naval Base Devonport ........... Plymouth. Largest Naval Base in West Europe
RN Barracks .............................. Stonehouse, nr Plymouth
HMS Cambridge ........................ Wembury, nr Plymouth
Army .............. Lulworth. Firing Ranges
Army ............... Okehampton. Training area
Army ................ Willsworthy. Firing range

DORSET:
RNAS Portland ... Undergoing closure. All a/c [140] transferred to RNAS Yeovilton Jan '99
Army ........... Wyke Regis. Training area
Wool ........... Training area

ESSEX:
MOD Wethersfield ........................ HQ MOD Police [fomerly USAF base] Former RAF Matching ..... 5m east of Harlow
Former USAAF Little Walden .......................................... nr Saffron Walden
Army .................. Colchester Garrison. Inc Airmobile Brigades & Air Defence
DERA ............ Shoeburyness. Army ranges

GLOUCESTERSHIRE:
GCHQ/NSA Chelteham .... Centre for Government Communications - Currently undergoing a £330 Million facelift -  See the latest pictures and info on the next few pages
RAF Boddington .......................... No.9 Signals Unit + TARE HQ
RAF Fairford ............................................. Currently used by USAF in Europe
RAF Hullavington ............................. No.621, No.625 V.G.S. - Viking TX.1.
RAF Innsworth ............................... HQ RAF Training
British Army .......................... Ashchurch

HAMPSHIRE:
Gosport .... Large Naval stores & inc. hospital
HM Naval Base Portsmouth ............... Large Naval Supply Base
Fort Southwick ... adjacent to DERA. Comms site
DERA ..... Lasham. Closed with transfer to W.Scotland. Property for sale
BAe ........................ Hurn, 4m NE Christchurch
Army ...................... Aldershot Garrison inc. Airborne Brigades
Army ............... Andover Garrison.
School of Army Aviation ................. Middle Wallop. HQ. Gazelle, Squirrel, Lynx helis
Army .................................................................................... Worthy Down
Bramley ......... Former bomb/ammo depot now training area
Radio Research Station .................................. Chilbolton, nr Aldershot
RAF Oakhanger ................. Mil SatcomUK, No.1001 Sigs + NATO Sat grnd term
RAF Odiham .......................................... Nos.7, 18 & 27 Sqns. Transport. Chinook HC2s
Royal Aircraft Research Establishment .................Farnborough
RN Research Station ...........................Lea-on-Solent, 4m WNW Portsmouth

HEREFORD & WORCESTER:
RAF Credenhill [former] ... nr. Hereford. New home to Special Air Service [22 SAS] following closure of Stirling Lines.
Royal Radar Establishment ............................... Defford
DERA ................. Pershore [MOD]

HERTFORDSHIRE:
BAe ......... Stevenage. Builds missiles and electronic equipment for a/craft

HUMBERSIDE:
Cowden ..................... East Coast Bombing Range
RAF Leconfield .................................................. SAR Westland Sea King HAR3 helicopters

HUNTINGDON:
RAF Alconbury ...................... Deactivated. Site sold for development

KENT:
Ash ...................................... Part of Manston. Radar + Air Warfare for ADGE
Rochester ................................. Defence Explosive Ordnance Disposal School
DERA ................................. Fort Halstead. Regarded by some as a stealth research facility
RAF Biggin Hill ................................ Westerham
RAF Manston ........................ Ramsgate - no a/c
Army ...... Ashford. Templar Barracks. Defence Intelligence and Security School
Army .............. Lydd. Training area

LANCASHIRE:
Samlesbury .............. No.635 V.G.S. - Vigilant T.1.
RAF Waddington .... Elec Recon + E/Warning, Nimrod R1s, Sentry AEW1s (NATO use of station)
RAF Woodvale ............................................................................... University Air Squadrons
BAe Warton ...... R&D. Upgraded fac. linked to 'HALO' stealth a/craft project

LEICESTERSHIRE:
RAF Cottesmore .................... Oakham, nr Leicester, Tornado GR1
RAF North Luffenham .............. nr Oakham
Army ............ Loughborough. Communication and Security Group (U.K)

LINCOLNSHIRE:
RAF Barkston Heath ................. Relief Landing Ground for Cranwell + training
RAF Binbrook ............................. nr Lincoln
RAF Coningsby ........................... nr Lincoln Nos. 5, 29 & 56 Sqns, Tornado F3s (Air Defence)
RAF Cranwell .................. nr Sleaford, Air Warfare Centre + air training
RAF Digby ........................... nr Lincoln, No.s 399 / 591 Sigs Unit
Donna Nook .......................... nr North Somercotes. Bombing range
RAF Holbeach ................Wash offshore bombing range
RAF Honington .................... Depot (no a/c)
RAF Scampton ............. nr Lincoln, Earmarked for closure
RAF Waddington ... nr Lincoln. Electronic & A/Warfare. AWACS E-3D + Nimrod
RAF Wainfleet ................... All Saints. East Coast bombing range
Army ............. Kirton-in-Lindsey. 22nd Air Def. Reg
Royal Ordnance Faldingworth ......nr Market Rasen. Closure sched. Apr '99 (RO is part of BAe)

Grt LONDON:
RAF Bentley Priory .......... UK Air Defence [north/south] - No.s 11/18 Group HQ
RAF Hendon ................................. De-activated. Site redeveloped and inc Met police HQ
RAF Kenley ........................................... No.615 V.G.S. - Viking TX.1.
RAF Northolt ........................ Ruislip. VIPs & Royal, BAe 125s, 146s
RAF Northwood . Main MOD Ops / NATO / Trident [nuke] Ops Centre. Large u/grnd. facility.
RAF Stanmore Park .... HQ No.11 Strike Com (air def). Closed end 98. Transf to Bentley Priory
RAF Uxbridge ........................ HQ Military Air Traffic Ops (NATO)
RAF West Drayton .................... Military ATC

NORFOLK:
RAF Coltishall ... Norwich, Nos. 6, 41, 54 Sqns, Jaguar 1A, 1Bs, inc photo reconn unit
RAF Marham .................. Nos 2 & 13 Sqns, GR1A Tornado (Tac Recon) + Canberras
RAF Neatishead ................. Radar Site
RAF Swanton Mornley ...................... nr Dereham
RAF West Raynham ....................... nr Fakenham
Army .................. Thetford. Training area

NORTHUMBERLAND:
Army ................................. Alnwick. 'Z' Company
Army ................................. Ashington. 'Z' Company
Army .......................... Otterburn. Artillery training area
RAF Boulmer ..... nr Alnwick. Radar site. No.1 A.C.C.,H.Q. No.202 Sq: Sea King HAR.3
Brizlee Wood ........................................ Radar Site

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE:
RAF Syerston ............................ Cadet training
RAF Newton .............. nr Nottingham. air training
Army ............ Nottingham. Inc Sect of 2nd Military Intell Co

OXFORDSHIRE:
RAF Abingdon .....................................................Abingdon
USAF Barford St John
RAF Bampton Castle ............................ HF Comms - Parented by RAF Brize Norton
RAF Benson .................. No.33 sqdn, Puma Helicopters. No. 6 AEF
RAF Brize Norton ..... Nos.10, 101, 216 Sqdns, VC10 tanker / transp base. TacComm Wing etc
RAF Shrivenham ............................................. RMS of Science + Def Info Tech
Weston-on-the-Green ...................... Sat. of Brize Norton. Parachute Drop Center
Joint Army / RAF / USAF ............................. Bicester
USAF Upper Heyford .............
British Army ............................. Abingdon. 3rd Close + 4th General Supp. Reg. Dalton Barracks
Atomic Energy Commission .................. Culham

SHROPSHIRE (SALOP):
RAF Cosford .............................. No.8 A.E.F.,No.633 V.G.S. - Vigilant T.1.
RAF Shawbury ..... nr Shrewsbury, Defence Helicopter Training School + Cent. ATC School
RAF Tern Hill ............................... Def. Helicopter Training + No 632 VGS Vigilant T1s
Unspecified Base ...................... Bridleway Gate
Unspecified Base ...................... Chetwynd
Army ............ Nesscliffe. Training area
British Telecom .............. Oswestry. BTs secret switching/tapping center

SOMERSET:
RAF Locking ............................................... nr WSM. De-activated. Quarters earmarked for asylum seekers
RNAS Yeovilton .. Sea Harrier FA2s/T4N/T8s + Sea King HC4, Linx, Gazelle, Puma & Chinook Helis [140+ a/c]
RN Norton Manor Camp ................. nr Taunton

STAFFORDSHIRE:
RAF Stafford ................. Sandon Rd, Beaconside, Tac Supply Wing + maint
Army ................ Leek. Training camp
Army ......... Swynnerton. Llansilin Firing Range

SUFFOLK:
RAF Feltwell ................................ US 5th Space Surveillance Squadron [BMEWS]
RAF Honington .......... nr Bury St Edmonds. Air Warfare Centre Surface-to-Air Weapons O.E.U.,
RAF Lakenheath .................................. Currently used by USAF in Europe
RAF Mildenhall ........................ Use by USAF Europe. Inc 352nd Special Ops Grp [7th, 21st and 67th SOS]
RAF Wattisham ........... Ipswich. RAF ATC. No.22 Sqn SAR, Sea King HAR3s
Martlesham Heath .......... BT Labs. Used by UK Govt to examine every new comms product

SURREY:
BAe Dunsfold .................... Maint. & repair of Harrier GR..7 a/c

WARWICKSHIRE:
Kineton ..... Bomb/ammo depot, incorporates large railway system

WILTSHIRE:
Corsham Computer Centre .. nr Bath. In reality a military 'black project' nuclear underground command centre. See our article on Rudloe Manor.
Aircraft & Armament Experimental Establishment ............. Boscombe Down
Radio Research Station ................... Blakehill Farm, 2m SW of Cricklade
RAF Boscombe Down ........... Amesbury, nr Salisbury. Air Warfare, DETO
RAF Colerne ............ Colerne, nr Bath. No 1001 Sigs
RAF Hulavington ................. nr Chippenham
RAF Lyneham ............................. nr Chippenham, TacTransport, Hercules C1, C3s
RAF Rudloe Manor .... Hawthorne, MoD Comms N/work, linked with UFO reporting [closed + 42 acre site being sold off]

Army / RAF Upavon ... nr Pewsey. No 622 VGS
Army Air Corp ........ Netheravon, Old Sarum
Army ............ Lyneham. 47 Air Desp Sqn
Army ................................. Colerne. Sigs
Army .......................... Corsham. Natl Comms
Army ..... Trowbridge. Fwd Air Cont Troop
RN Estab ....... Wroughton, nr Swindon
DERA ........................ Larkhill [MOD]
Porton Down ..... [Army] Chemical & Biological Defence Estab
Winterbourne Gunner .... Jnt Svcs Defence Nuclear Biological & Chemical (N.B.C.) Centre

WORCESTERSHIRE:
DERA ............. Malvern. Wide-ranging research inc., jamming, radar detection and electronic warfare. Encryption, computer security & hacking, lasers, lcd & night vision research. Secure comms satelites and Data links. Stealth, UAVs & possibly uncorroborated Teleportation research.

YORKSHIRE:
GCHQ / NSA Menwith Hill (Fylingdales].... BMEWS Site linked to USSC, Colorado Springs
Forest Moor NMC ........ (Nav/Nat Mil Comms] adjacent to above.Main trunk route for all Naval SatCom
RAF Catterick ............................. nr Richmond. Garrison. Inc Section of 2 Millitary Intelligence
RAF Church Fenton ................ No.9 A.E.F.,Relief landing ground for Linton-on-Ouse
RAF Dishforth ....................... Army Air Corp Heli base
RAF Finningley ...................... nr Doncaster. Closed. Site sold for industrial use & poss. Intl. Airport
RAF Leeming ............................. Leeming Bar, Northallerton. Panavia (Mfg) Tornado F3 (Maritime Air Defence) + Hawks
RAF Linton-upon-Ouse .................... nr York, Pilot training, CFS Tucano T1 Squadron
RAF Topcliffe .......................... Satellite of RAF Linton-on-Ouse
Army ............. York. H.Q. 2 Military Intelligence Company

SCOTLAND

Britain's atom bomb store at Coulport in Scotland. Sixteen massive bunkers have been gouged out of the ridge overlooking Loch Long. This building can store more than 100 atom bombs in underground vaults behind airlock doors. It is used as a temporary holding bay when the bombs arrive at Coulport. They are then moved to a jetty and loaded onto Trident submarines.

WALES

ANGLESEY:
RAF Valley ..... nr Holyhead. Hawks, 22nd Sq S&R Sea King HAR3 + Air Guided Weapons eval.
RAF Mona ................................... Diversion runway for Valley

NORTHERN IRELAND

Aircraft in Current RAF / RN / ARMY [+ others] Service

Specialist [helicopters]

* Talon II used by 7th SOS [U.S.]
* Pave Low used by 21st SOS [U.S.]
* Combat Shadow used by 67th SOS [U.S.]
Above three Specops squadrons form part of U.S. 352nd Special Operations Group based at RAF Mildenhall.
* Agusta 109 used by Special Air Service [SAS] Counter Revolutionary Warfare Wing

Offensive

Defensive

Reconnaissance and Maritime Patrol Aircraft

* nb: Nimrod MRA4's [built by BAe] will become the RAF's next-generation maritime patrol and attack aircraft capable of detecting the new 'stealth' submarines

Tanker and Transport Aircraft

* nb: C-130J is a replacement for the C-130K and RAF Lyneham, Wilts., received the first batch in the UK on Nov 25 1999
Four C-17s will be leased by RAF from Boeing with delivery of first a/c in the Spring of 2001.

Smaller Transport Aircraft [Royal/Government]

Helicopters

* nb: The Army took delivery of its first WAH-64 Apache in March 2000. It will form part of the Armed Forces' new Joint Helicopter Command which will be responsible for 16 Air Assault Brigade.
RN Sea Kings will eventually be replaced by the new Merlin. Bigger & faster, it first entered service on Dec 1/98 with RNAS Culdrose. Its role is mostly anti-submarine and Culdrose will receive 44 of these craft.

Training Aircraft

This enigmatic air-base has become a pivotal piece in the UFO jigsaw.  Area 51 is located in Nevada, taking up the kind of acreage that a small country would be proud of.  According to official U.S. statements, it doesn’t actually exist, but unofficially it is an operational testing range for the cutting edge technological developments of America’s armed forces.  The facilities centred around the Groom Lake area are amongst the most secretive in the world, requiring a level of security so remarkable that Area 51 has become a modern day myth in its own right.

Access to the base is by authorised personnel only, via a daily shuttle service from Las Vegas aboard a Boeing 747.  There is no perimeter fence, just vast mileage of desert in all directions inaccessible to the public.  This ‘no man’s land’ around Groom Lake is patrolled constantly by the infamous Camo-dudes, supported by electronic surveillance, military units and air support.  Warning signs on the edge of Area 51 tell of heavy penalties for intruders, including the authorisation for the deadly use of force.  No one denies that the U.S. Government aims to keep this site secure at all costs.  No one gets in. Period.

It is also known that the hangar doors in the sides of the mountains are closed when satellites pass overhead.  The astronaut Gordon Cooper recently disclosed that the reason why film taken by him, whilst orbiting in Gemini 5, was confiscated was because he had been inadvertantly travelling over Area 51 at the time.
 

It is known that the base boasts one of the world’s longest runways, although the need for this is not clear unless landings from sub-orbital vehicles are necessitated.  None of this is visible to the public, as the surrounding vantage points in nearby mountains have been bought up and included within the perimeter of the vast site.  So, given the total paranoia surrounding its activities, what exactly goes on here?

According to Bob Lazar, a free-lance physicist and engineer, its activities include reverse-engineering extra-terrestrial craft!  He first came forward with these claims in March 1989, when appearing on George Knapp’s news programme on Channel 8, based in Las Vegas.  He described his brief time at a facility known as S-4, where he worked on back-engineering exotic craft built to accommodate small beings.  Although his credibility has since been questioned by many, notably the nuclear physicist Stanton Friedman, supporting evidence indicates that Lazar did indeed work at S-4, as well as other scientific establishments who initially denied all knowledge of him.  His academic credentials remain in doubt, although his scientific knowledge is undeniable. It seems that his free-lance working pattern makes him a lower security risk to places like Area 51, simply because he is so difficult to authenticate as a scientist.

Other individuals have since come forward to corroborate a lot of what Lazar claims, although on the large choosing to remain anonymous.  As a result of all this, Area 51 is now an intrinsic part of UFO folklore and has done much to support the extra-terrestrial hypothesis.  One thing is for sure, many bizarre, seemingly exotic craft have been witnessed, photographed and filmed in the immediate area.  The question is, are they the result of E.T. technology or simply our own independent development?

Sceptics point to the emergence of stealth aircraft as a possible example of why Area 51 exists.  Although they first saw action during the Gulf War, Lockheed Martin had been secretly developing the technology at its “Skunkworks” for many years.  The assumption, then, is that the more advanced, exotic vehicles will emerge in the near future when required by the next military enterprise.  The problem with this stance is that these vehicles have been witnessed for many, many years and, while the opportunity presented itself in the form of Kosovo, have never been seen to be used.  Their obviously advanced capabilities would certainly be of immeasurable benefit to Allied armed forces, but they remain closeted away.

This fuels speculation that the craft are indeed recovered UFOs, or at least our best efforts at emulating the alien technology.  After all, the billions of dollars clearly spent on these black projects must produce pragmatic hardware, so their obvious absence from the theatres of war can only be attributed to their sensitive, indeed paradigm-shifting, nature.  To use these craft is to admit to their existence, is to admit to the Big Secret.  So the whole house of cards is at stake.  Even worse, The American public would then realise that billions of their tax-dollars have been covertly spent on reverse-engineering UFOs, with no material benefit to themselves.

The late Colonel Corso would then have claimed that the use of alien technology was indeed seeded into American industry over several decades, but surely this can only be the tip of the ice-berg.  Consider the potential uses of advanced propulsion, anti-gravity and alternative energy sources inevitably involved in alien technology.  How would the voters react if they were aware that the U.S. Government and military has had access to this potential technology for decades, especially considering the damage to our planet inflicted by the mis-use of our current energy resources?  The potential ramifications of this discovery are enormous.  What President in their right mind would let the cat out of this bag?

Area 51 was photographed by the Ikonos satellite, and the resulting high-definition pictures were
released to the Federation of American Scientists (FAS)
who commissioned the images.  The images offered by the Denver-based company Space Imaging are able to resolve objects down to one metre across, and the satellite’s digital camera can be pointed anywhere on the surface of the Earth.  The company offers mass-produced space images for as little as $10, but will also provide images of targets commissioned by private individuals or organisations for several hundred dollars. On the next page we show the latest images which were released in April, 2000.

Ikonos was launched last September as a $700m venture by Lockheed Martin and Rayathon.  The company counts the US Government as one of its clients.  The inclusion of Lockheed Martin as one of the founding organisations is ironic, considering its involvement in sensitive defence contracts in cutting edge aerospace technology.  It is also widely understood that Area 51 closes down its operations whenever  it is flown over by satellites, but the images will nevertheless be of tremendous interest to all UFO buffs.  The FAS campaigns against government secrecy, and have included Area 51 amongst a list of other military installations in North Korea, Iran, Pakistan and India.  Their aim is to provide evidence of the spread of sophisticated weaponry around the world.

Tuesday, September 12, 2000
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
County collects on Groom Lake taxes
By KEITH ROGERS
REVIEW-JOURNAL

The check for $162,000 came from nowhere. It represents taxes paid by an unknown contractor doing God-knows-what in the middle of nowhere. But the mystery doesn't bother Lincoln County District Attorney Phil Dunleavy.

"The only thing that matters is the cash," he said.

Lincoln County officials gladly accepted the money as part of a tax settlement with contractors working at a top-secret facility the Air Force will describe only as "an operating location near Groom dry lake."

Former workers at the 38,400-acre Groom Lake installation, most of which sits in Lincoln County, have said it is used to test high-tech U.S. aircraft. The workers have charged that coatings for radar-evading stealth fighter jets were burned in open trenches near the dry lake, 90 miles north of Las Vegas.

Dunleavy said Monday he is not at liberty to explain the details of an agreement between the county and an unidentified party over the "use tax," which is similar to a property tax and is charged to contractors that operate on government land.

He did acknowledge that negotiations took place and that the tax payment covered the period June 1999 to June 2001. "This is a very poor county, and this is a lot of money for this county,"
said Dunleavy, who noted Lincoln County is home to about 4,100 residents.

"You're going to have to trust Uncle Sam," he said.

County Treasurer Kathy Hiatt confirmed that the check, made out to "Lincoln County Treasurer," has been deposited at the Bank of America in Pioche.

A copy of the check - No. 45484, in the amount of $162,065.48 - is dated Aug. 7 and was printed by the Northern Trust Co. in Chicago. It has a vendor number - L00001 - but the name of the party paying the check has been left blank.

Hiatt said the "authorizing signature" is by someone whose name appears to be "William F. Neet," and below is the signature of someone named "Dean A."

Lincoln County commissioners accepted the check at a meeting in August, Hiatt said. County Assessor Bill Lloyd confirmed that the check was for taxes at the Groom Lake installation, commonly known as Area 51. He said the secrecy makes it impossible for county officials to verify whether the contractors are paying their fair share.

"It's such a secret place we can't go out there and get the stuff ourselves," Lloyd said. "We just assess them on what they give us, what they figured it's worth ... and then we tax them on it. We just have to take their word."

An Air Force spokeswoman at the Pentagon, who was asked about the mysterious check, said last week she was unable to trace it back to Air Force offices in Washington or at the Nellis base near Las Vegas.

"It's just highly unusual that the Air Force would issue a check out of a Chicago bank," said the spokeswoman, Capt. Almarah Belk. "It should have a U.S. Treasury seal, if it was an Air Force check," she said.

At the Aug. 21 Lincoln County Commission meeting, Dunleavy told commissioners the secret tax agreement stemmed from a 1997 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that found Nevada's use-tax law unconstitutional because it taxed the federal government, not the private contractors who operate at government facilities. Because of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the Air Force did not owe Lincoln County taxes from 1972 to 1993. In the meantime, Nevada legislators rewrote the tax law to allow counties to tax federal contractors.

According to minutes of the commission meeting, the county struck a deal under which the Air Force would not seek reimbursement for some $664,000 it paid to Lincoln County in taxes from 1972 to 1993. In return, the county would not dock Area 51 contractors for $667,000 in back taxes covering 1994 to 1999. The Air Force agreed that its contractors would pay
taxes to Lincoln County on a regular basis.

The Air Force has never publicly acknowledged the existence of a "base" near Groom Lake. But on Oct. 26, 1994, after former workers had sued the Air Force claiming they were exposed to toxic fumes from hazardous waste burned in open pits at the installation, the Air Force issued a statement that has become its boilerplate answer to questions about the installation.

"There are a variety of activities, some of which are classified, throughout what is often called the Air Force's Nellis Range Complex," the statement said. "The range is used for the testing of technologies and systems and training for operations critical to the effectiveness of U.S.
military forces and the security of the United States".

"There is an operating location near Groom dry lake. Some specific activities and operations conducted on the Nellis Range, both past and present, remain classified and cannot be discussed," according to the Air Force statement.

Area 51 Photos