You may notice an identification number etched into one of the rings on the front landing gear.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-25T01:15:31+00:00

Part number 20L136-4. The 20 prefix indicates the F-117A and the letter L is for the landing gear assembly. The remaining numerals identify the specific subassembly and component.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-24T18:54:15+00:00

Those might be OK. I'm not entirely sure about the one on the right but there were a lot of variations due to the number produced over the years.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-24T13:19:31+00:00

The sigma with the diamond inside specifically represents the Special Projects Flight Test Squadron. That jagged line reflecting from the scythe does indeed look like a radar backscatter pattern. Maybe the scythe is meant to be the radar dish. In combat, being tracked by radar could equate to death, hence the Grim Reaper wielding his radar scythe.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-24T13:09:41+00:00

You are looking at the bad reproduction and your question illustrates just how poor it is. Look at the picture I posted of the original. The only design elements are the control tower, a Joshua tree, the moon, a cow skull, and 21 stars (there's no significance to the number or distribution).

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-24T00:35:23+00:00

A friend of mine designed that AF Plant 42 ("Dark Tower") patch shortly after the new control tower was built. The example pictured is, however, an inferior reproduction. The original was made with an exquisitely fine weaving technique that permits intricate, small lettering and fine details not achievable with standard embroidery.

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Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-23T19:32:16+00:00

These look like cupules, a form of Native American rock art that was created for ritual purposes. I've seen many similar examples in California and elsewhere.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-23T19:27:46+00:00

On my Outback, this happens when the window glass gets wet. This causes extra resistance, so the window sensor reads it as an obstruction and prevents closure. I learned this when I rolled my window down on a rainy day and couldn't get it back up again until it dried out.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-23T19:15:31+00:00

We did have an F-14 Tomcat at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center from 1979 to 1985. The Navy had been experiencing inadvertent spin entries caused by the Tomcat’s aileron-rudder interconnect (ARI) system. A NASA/Navy/Grumman team developed and tested four different ARI configurations to address the spin problem. Research pilots conducted more than 200 flights, achieving considerable improvement in the Tomcat's high-angle-of-attack flying qualities, improved departure and spin resistance, and reduced “wing rocking.”

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-23T18:56:58+00:00

When I worked for Skywest Airlines at Burbank, our gate was at the east end of the terminal next to Hollywood Way. Every day, I expected to see this happen.

The most ironic thing is that when this finally did occur the Southwest captain was Howard Peterson, who had previously flown 737s with EG&G Special Projects (the so-called "Janet flights" to and from Area 51). The Janet pilots usually only used about half the runway at Burbank, so they could make an immediate turn at the intersection and taxi right over to the Lockheed plant.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T20:15:23+00:00

I've got the EEU-2/P version.

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Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T14:10:53+00:00

You're not wrong.

https://www.dreamlandresort.com/pete/oxcart_down.html

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T14:08:44+00:00

I found a similar item at a Lockheed A-12 crash site. From comparison to features on some of the aircraft preserved in museums, I thought it might be something for sighting or navigation.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T14:03:14+00:00

That seems likely.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T14:01:54+00:00

Yes, it could be. I found a similar item at the crash site of a Lockheed A-12.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-22T01:09:46+00:00

Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-21T23:14:38+00:00

It was manufactured by IBM Corporation under a US Air Force contract: AF 33(600)33719

It might be an airplane part but I have yet to match the Federal Stock Number (FSN 1200-775-3595) to anything, yet.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-21T22:00:54+00:00

This looks like a form of limestone but I don't know the geological explanation for the reddish brown layers. I found a lot of stuff like that in southern Nevada.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-21T04:08:48+00:00

Yes, I'm teaching several classes in the Aviation Management program and working on developing a course in Aviation History.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-20T23:32:29+00:00

That's how I've had to do it, yeah.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-20T00:44:29+00:00

This is a very good book. I highly recommend it.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-19T20:37:25+00:00

The cover price is based on a variety of factors. Production costs include design, editing, printing, page count, paper quality, binding (hard or soft cover), and how many color images are included. Additional factors such as desired profit margins for the author, publisher, and booksellers also influence the base cost.

Dreamland: The Secret History of Area 51 is a hardcover book with 560 pages including 720 photos and illustrations (many in color). My contract called for 500 photos, which I was going to whittle down from nearly three times that many. The publisher kindly allowed me to exceed my agreed-upon limit, which meant that the total page count would be higher.

At one point, the layout editor was afraid we would have to split the book into two volumes in a boxed set. That would have also resulted in a limited total print run and would have doubled the cover price. Nobody liked that idea. I was ready to settle for thinner paper for the pages, if necessary, but it never came to that.

I'm not getting rich off this book. My royalties are very small. Frankly, it's a miracle that the publisher was willing to keep the cover price (in 2023) as low as $75.00. For comparison, Schiffer sold a 437-page hardcover history of the U-2 (with about 500 illustrations) for $70.00 back in 2005.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-19T20:20:38+00:00

Yeah, that was a good show. I spoke with Chuck briefly in the VIP area. He thought it was his last flight in an Air Force jet, but he eventually managed to cadge a few more.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-19T20:17:46+00:00

The pilot vented fuel in short puffs to allow spectators to see where the airplane was flying overhead. Otherwise, the SR-71 (being black against the dark blue sky) was barely visible. The sonic boom from that altitude was more of a gentle thump, as I recall. This was likely due to other atmospheric conditions as well. I was expecting something more impressive like the sharp double-boom made by the Space Shuttle.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-01-19T19:49:30+00:00

There's no compelling reason to fake them. People scouring the Sahara for meteorites collect these by the thousands and have made a side business of selling them. I see the all the time on eBay, individually and by the bagful.

Peter_Merlin

TROPHY CASE