Nevada Aerospace Hall of Fame
Declaration of Enshrinement
October 8, 2017
The Roadrunners
- 1955 – 1968
- Founded Area 51
- Produced and developed the U-2 reconnaissance plane
- Produced and developed the A-12 reconnaissance plane
- Supported the Vietnam War with reconnaissance photos
- Located the USS Pueblo and crew seized by North Korea
- Produced the world’s only Mach 3 interceptor
- Produced the world’s first and only Mach 3 mothership and drone for reconnaissance.
The Roadrunners worked in obscurity for the Central Intelligence Agency at Area 51 to protect our country in the 1950s and 1960s. Comprised of CIA employees, US Air Force personnel, and numerous other government and industry organizations, the Roadrunners founded Area 51 where they developed and tested the Lockheed U-2. Built in just eight months and under budget, the U-2 began covert overflights of the Soviet Union one year later to dispel the fears of bomber and missile gaps. The U-2 was an enormous technological success: its first flight over the USSR in July 1956 made it immediately the most important source of intelligence on the Soviet Union. The Roadrunners continued their highly classified work at Area 51 during the CIA’s Project OXCART to produce a stealthy, fast, and high-flying replacement for the U-2. Using slide rule technology, the Roadrunners built the A-12, America’s first stealth plane that today is still the fastest and highest flying manned air-breathing aircraft ever.
Deploying from Area 51 to Kadena, Okinawa, the Roadrunners flew 29 operational surveillance missions during Operation BLACK SHIELD. Of these, 26 were over Southeast Asia to identify such military targets as surface-to-surface missile sites. Three sorties were flown over North Korea in response to the seizure of the USS Pueblo and its crew.
The Roadrunners at Area 51 expanded the pioneering of Mach-3 flight with the YF-12A interceptor prototypes during Project KEDLOCK, and the development of a Mach 3+ drone launched from a Mach 3 mothership during Project TAGBOARD. Personnel losses during this time included three CIA U-2 pilots, one Lockheed U-2 test pilot, two CIA A-12 pilots, two Air Force F-101 pilots, and one Lockheed M-21 launch control officer.
For their untold sacrifices and accomplishments in Nevada and around the world, the Roadrunners of Area 51 have earned a place in the Nevada Aerospace Hall of Fame.___________________________________
TD BARNES, Executive Director
Nevada Aerospace Hall of Fame
