The mysterious fatal crash of an Air Force aircraft at the Nevada Test and Training Range on Sept. 5 is raising speculation a new aircraft is under development at the fabled Area 51, the famous super-secret test center on the dry bed of Groom Lake in the Nevada desert. The Air Force announced that Lt. Col. Eric Schultz was killed in the crash and when reporters asked what type of aircraft he was flying they were told it was classified. They were told that “additional information concerning the accident will be released as it becomes available.”
The crash occurred at 6 p.m. on Sept. 5 and military.com reported that an Air Force spokeswoman said the aircraft type was classified. The crash happened about 50 miles from the base at Area 51 in heavily restricted airspace. The aircraft was attached to the Air Force Materiel Command, which owns all USAF aircraft and runs the test center at Edwards Air Force Base. Lt. Col. Schultz was an experienced test pilot who had worked on the F-35 test program.
