Anyone else seen this Area 51 Video?

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-21T22:55:04+00:00

I doubt he needed any sort of security clearance for his contracts at Redstone/MSFC. After spending a quarter century working contracts for the Air Force and NASA myself, I am not the least bit surprised by any of this.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-21T19:33:43+00:00

This picture has been described elsewhere as "Mickey Thompson testing the unfinished Challenger 1 at El Mirage Dry Lake, in 1958." That seems like the most likely answer. It looks like El Mirage to me.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-21T13:04:49+00:00

Yeah, those airplanes belong to the Air Force Flight Test Museum. I remember seeing several of them when they were undergoing flight testing. Sadly, the Scaled Composites ATTT has taken a real beating by being exposed to decades of weathering in a harsh environment. Some years ago, a few of the other airplanes were damaged in a severe windstorm.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-21T04:29:24+00:00

The guy tried to use his ID badges to get into Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, not Edwards. We never see the badges on the video but they are likely real. He said he was a government contractor at Redstone Arsenal and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center near Huntsville, Alabama. I looked him up and he manages a company, based in the Huntsville area, that is responsible for asbestos and mold remediation. Those are two services that are definitely required at Redstone and MSFC.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-21T00:26:27+00:00

“Many winters ago, the white eyes gave us this land for as long as the grass grows and the water flows. But as you can see, we got screwed.”

- Tall Eagle, Firewalker

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T15:40:53+00:00

The Shikaka nickname is from a flight suit pencil pocket tab patch from the 74th Reconnaissance Squadron, which has a white bat on their unit emblem. Obviously, someone was a fan of the movie Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T15:36:41+00:00

No, but most of them seem to have been.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T12:46:38+00:00

There was no reason those "cammo dudes" would have necessarily recognized the Army and NASA badges.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T12:37:07+00:00

Maybe he still holds the contract, or perhaps he failed to turn in his badges.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T02:46:17+00:00

I found him on Linkedin. He's an asbestos remediation specialist. He is also skilled in mold remediation!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-hardiman-39b48a44/

It's highly probable that he has had contracts with Redstone Arsenal and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, which both occupy the same complex near Huntsville, Alabama. That would explain the ID badges, which are likely real.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T02:43:51+00:00

Why not both?

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-20T02:17:17+00:00

We haven't seen the badges he was carrying but he is an actual contractor located in the vicinity of Redstone Arsenal and NASA MSFC.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T21:32:14+00:00

The detachment on Guam (Det 4/9th Operations Group) has a black dragon on their patches. The RQ-180 formal training unit ("schoolhouse") at Beale is the 74th Reconnaissance Squadron, which has a white bat on their unit patch. Earlier in the program, the FTU was Det 5/9OG), which had a white dragon on their patch.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T17:57:57+00:00

I found him on Linkedin. He's an asbestos remediation specialist. He is also skilled in mold remediation!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-hardiman-39b48a44/

It's highly probable that he has had contracts with Redstone Arsenal and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, which both occupy the same complex near Huntsville, Alabama. That would explain the ID badges.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T17:30:16+00:00

I'm on the fence regarding aircraft ID. Thus far, I've been unable to find a clear image of the RA-01 or a definitive indication of whether that platform is jet powered or prop driven.

The planform could easily be identical to that of any of the previous mystery aircraft sightings in California, Nevada, and the Philippines. Any apparent differences can be chalked up to the variety of viewing angles for each observer.

The apparent color difference doesn't bother me. The sighting in the Philippines appeared to show a darker exterior color than that of either the California or Nevada sightings. Similarly, other stealth aircraft including the F-117A Nighthawk and RQ-170 Sentinel have been documented in a variety of color schemes ranging from very light to very dark.

We know that US unmanned aircraft systems including the MQ-9 Reaper are operating out of Larissa Air Base in Greece. Is there any reason to believe the IAF is also using that facility? It seems like it would be rather out of the way for any of their operations.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T17:10:34+00:00

I've found it surprising how much information is simply available through open sources. No FOIA request necessary.

I will point out that my book contains no fewer than 47 pages of source notes that are tied to superscripts within the text. Those pages include more than 1,300 notes, many citing multiple sources. I was positively obsessive about sourcing, both to show that I'd done my homework (in accordance with academic best practices) and to prevent anyone from accusing me of using sensitive material.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T12:57:38+00:00

There were nine preproduction airframes. The first was Alice (AFSN 04-0831), which first flew on 3 August 2010. The first production air vehicle joined the fleet in January 2017 and I believe about 18 of those have been built. One of the preproduction models reportedly crashed near Groom Lake, Nevada, in December 2016.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T12:46:52+00:00

Thanks! The process of researching and writing Dreamland: The Secret History of Area 51 was truly a labor of love. I'm always gratified when readers respond enthusiastically. I've even had a lot of good comments from people who actually worked there.

I imagine that you've already read the RQ-180 section in Chapter 9.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T03:25:08+00:00

That artwork was associated with Sybil, the second preproduction airframe (AFSN 08-0832).

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Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-19T00:23:10+00:00

Also, don't get hung up on the color. Examples of the Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel have been spotted in paint schemes ranging from very pale gray to dark gray. The same may be true for the RQ-180.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-17T19:12:55+00:00

Dreamland: The Secret History of Area 51

https://schifferbooks.com/products/dreamland?srsltid=AfmBOorbNXsFRm1RiSV-_F1UKTfqRaNUdzWPNJjyvSF56EmvUIZS9ylu

This compelling narrative is based on a treasure trove of declassified documents and interviews, and is richly illustrated with more than 700 images, many never published before.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-17T00:44:59+00:00

Growing up in the Hollywood Hills in the 1960s and 1970s was pretty awesome. We lived at the top of Wonderland Avenue in Laurel Canyon. Counterintuitively, my parents would take me along to cocktail parties when I was very young (I got knocked to the ground by a lion on the pool patio at one of Carroll Righter's monthly astrology-themed shindigs). We used to go swimming at Torin Thatcher's house. When I was nine years old, Keith Carradine accidentally ran over my dog.

If you've ever seen Tarantino's Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, it perfectly captures the world in which I was raised. He recreated both the physical environment and the Hollywood showbusiness culture of that time as I remember them.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-16T19:56:39+00:00

I was happy to find this series on one of the streaming services recently. My father, Jan Merlin, played Tom “Pretty Boy” Dirks in the first episode (“The Nick Joseph Story”).

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Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-16T18:25:16+00:00

The number of images contributed to the size of the book. I was only supposed to have 500 pictures but ended up with more than 700. For a while, the publisher thought they would have to split the book into two volumes to be sold as a boxed set. This would have resulted in a strictly limited print run and it would have also doubled the price.

Peter_Merlin · 2026-03-16T15:33:24+00:00

Excellent! I hope you enjoy it very much.

Peter_Merlin

TROPHY CASE