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Air Force: We’re not kidding. “Storming Area 51” would be a really bad idea
Hot Air.com ^ | July 14, 2019 | JAZZ SHAW

Posted on 07/14/2019 5:24:42 PM PDT by Kaslin

Just yesterday we were discussing what I’m still holding out hope turns out to be one of the most widespread pranks in history. Nearly 400,000 people have signed on to a crackpot scheme on Facebook to “storm” Area 51, the top-secret military base located near Groom Lake in Nevada. The guy who actually started it is assuring the authorities it was a joke (and begging not to be arrested) but his followers don’t all seem to agree. The situation is being taken seriously enough that the Air Force actually responded to a question about it. While not coming out and specifically threating to burn all of these people to cinders if they cross the fence, they sure sounded like they were implying it. The following was offered up by Air Force spokeswoman Laura McAndrews. (The Hill)

Air Force spokeswoman Laura McAndrews declined to elaborate on specific details.

However, she did issue a warning to those who may be serious about a plan to infiltrate the Nevada Air Force base.

“[Area 51] is an open training range for the U.S. Air Force, and we would discourage anyone from trying to come into the area where we train American armed forces,” McAndrews told the paper.

“The U.S. Air Force always stands ready to protect America and its assets,” she added.

The Air Force stands ready to protect America and its assets. And you can rest assured they have plenty of assets out at Groom Lake. Whether it’s the next generation of stealth fighters being developed or an interstellar cell tower so ET can phone home, they don’t allow anyone in. The other assets they have on hand include both Apache choppers and fighter jets.

Depending on how you read the spokeswoman’s rather veiled comments, it’s not hard to imagine that she’s hinting at precisely what I was suggesting yesterday. If one or two people show up and try to sneak in, odds are some guys in an SUV will show up, tackle you, detain you for questioning for a few days and then let you go. But if more people than can be tackled all swarm the place at once from multiple entry points, particularly if it looks like some of them will make it to the airstrip, what do you think they’re going to do?

Do you really think they wouldn’t give the order to just start ripping the crowd up with weapons? That’s an awfully big assumption to literally bet your life on.

Our Air Force and other military officers take the same oath as most elected officials. They will protect against “all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Don’t become one of those domestic enemies. You won’t like how it ends.

For those who are really curious about what Area 51 looks like but don’t want to wind up as a grease stain in the middle of the desert, here’s one of the most recent videos anyone managed to take of the base. A guy and his son scaled their way up to the top of Tikaboo Peak, from which Area 51 can be seen at a great distance. You’re not supposed to climb that mountain, but they managed to not get caught. The guy dragged up a video camera with an extremely powerful zoom lens and start filming. Spoiler alert: He didn’t see any aliens.

AREA 51 FROM TIKABOO PEAK PART 1 (THE BASE IS VERY ACTIVE)


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: airforce; area51; extraterrestrials; nevadastorm
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To: AndyJackson

I didn’t say their were no ROE for use of lethal force. I said the US military will not open fire on a bunch of illegals crossing the border. We need too use less-than-lethal force to stop them from stepping into the country and short stop all this deportation/detention BS.


61 posted on 07/14/2019 6:40:29 PM PDT by morphing libertarian ( Use Comey's Report, Indict Hillary now; build Kate's wall. --- Proud Smelly Walmart Deplorable)
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To: clamper1797

They can’t claim that they weren’t warned. I have worked in DFA areas during my career, they really do mean business.


62 posted on 07/14/2019 6:41:47 PM PDT by wjcsux (The hyperventilating of the left means we are winning! (Tagline courtesy of Laz.))
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To: jmacusa

Ex-AF Security Forces here. There are indeed certain locations where you don’t dare step over the line. Nuclear, chemical weapons sites and places with “one of a kind” resources are immediate, without question, shoot first and recover the bodies later. I have had friends stationed at Groom Lake, and can tell you those people, if they make the attempt, are very likely to have a bad day.


63 posted on 07/14/2019 6:42:13 PM PDT by USAF1985 (Now is the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of their country.)
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To: Stravinsky
anyone does show up, no lethal force is going to be used. Lots of ways to control crowds that don’t involve gunning people down, especially with advanced notice.

They will be warned, escalating to being asked to voluntarily subdue themselves, escalating to being physically halted and restrained/incapacitated, escalating to death. They are not going to get anywhere near anything sensitive, or expose the extent of the security arrangements of anything sensitive.

This is not a couple of nutcase trying to wander onto a base and post a protest sign on the PX.

64 posted on 07/14/2019 6:42:17 PM PDT by AndyJackson
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To: ThunderSleeps

What concerns me is the probability of a TV news crew in amongst the protesters - the drive-bys will attempt to spin deadly force into another Kent State in the court of public opinion - Mark my words


65 posted on 07/14/2019 6:44:13 PM PDT by golas1964
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To: Kaslin
I was an Air Force Security Policeman (now called "Security Forces"). This was all we trained for and the use of deadly force is very much an option because the protection of United States national defense resources is serious business. Most people that have made serious attempts to infiltrate United States Air Force installations have not lived to tell about it.

If these characters start congregating in the general area of the approach to the base, they'll likely be intercepted by LLE or FBI types. If any of them are foolish enough enough to penetrate the installation and it's critical resources, Security Forces have no hesitation or regrets of using lethal force.

66 posted on 07/14/2019 6:46:29 PM PDT by fidelis (Zonie and USAF Cold Warrior)
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To: clamper1797
Do people realize the optics and the backlash that would result should the government open fire on a large group of American citizens ... in any case and for any reason

Multiple arrests of anyone who complained about our military doing what they have sworn an oath to do? Wake up, this is real life. Civilians do not get to storm a high security military installation.

67 posted on 07/14/2019 6:48:19 PM PDT by higgmeister ( In the Shadow of The Big Chicken)
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To: Kaslin
Most recent gate signage:

By the way - any photos of signs you see on the internet with the text "Area 51" are commercial products or artistic renderings. The facility at Groom Lake does not refer to itself as such.

68 posted on 07/14/2019 6:48:21 PM PDT by servo1969
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To: Kaslin

Looks like an opportunity for our military forces to take out some trash.


69 posted on 07/14/2019 6:52:46 PM PDT by familyop ("Welcome to Costco. I love you." - -Costco greeter in the movie, "Idiocracy")
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To: Kaslin

I was unaware until reading this thread there are so many people unfamiliar with the military and secure areas.

Area 51 is a place where they shoot trespassers. One was shot this year.


70 posted on 07/14/2019 6:53:45 PM PDT by Varda
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To: Kaslin

I suspect that if the Air Force gets rid of the freaks, there won’t be many flat-earth-ers heard from soon. Might not be many anti-defense weirdos in general.


71 posted on 07/14/2019 6:55:59 PM PDT by familyop ("Welcome to Costco. I love you." - -Costco greeter in the movie, "Idiocracy")
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To: Varda

You could fly over Area 51 in one of the Grand Theft Auto games. San Andreas I think. Well, you could try to fly over it. You got totally vaporized in about 5 seconds. Guessing it’s not much different IRL.


72 posted on 07/14/2019 6:56:49 PM PDT by KyCats
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To: Tejas Rob

Nobody is messing with Groom Lake.


73 posted on 07/14/2019 6:57:49 PM PDT by eyedigress ((Old storm chaser from the west))
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To: KyCats

If you take your cues for real life from games, real life could be real short.


74 posted on 07/14/2019 6:59:50 PM PDT by Varda
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To: jmacusa

I worked at NTS. I saw those signs all the time. When I was there there were SERIOUS!!
All the time!!!!!
Don’t do it.


75 posted on 07/14/2019 7:00:27 PM PDT by Agatsu77
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To: USAF1985
Indeed. I spent 32 years in. Just retired in December. One of my favorite stories deals with the Army and AF security forces.

It was a nice sunny day in the summer of 2000. I was working with an Army aviation brigade (Chinooks) up in eastern Wyoming as their SWO. On a whim, we decided to fly up through the Black Hills and have a go around Mt Rushmore and Crazyhorse (Which, BTW, is AWESOME from a helo). We needed to refuel so we stopped off at Ellsworth AFB. We all had to disembark while they refueled-and it was then that some of the Army guys noticed the big pretty red line.

Now - being in the AF (although I was army support my entire career), I knew what a 3' wide red line was for. But - I enjoyed the lecture the crew chief gave the other army guys (mechanics, etc, that were with us) about not crossing the big red line....that if they did...the BEST they could hope for would be to end up face down on the concrete with a few bones broken....and they worse thing that could happen would be that they would be shot...because this was Ellsworth...those were B-1 Bombers...pointing to the planes in the distance...and they were NUCLEAR bombers...and the AF doesn't play when it comes to all things nuclear.

Well...they all thought that was funny...until I...the one AF guy...said: "Uh...he's serious...and they will kill you." It was about that time that a couple of Ford F-150s rolled up and about 6 dudes with M-16's jumped out. They all got about as far away from the red line as they could.

They all stopped laughing. Then it was my turn...:-)

76 posted on 07/14/2019 7:04:20 PM PDT by NELSON111 (Congress: The Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog show. Theater for sheep. My politics determines my "hero")
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To: USAF1985
Earle Naval Weapons Storage Facility here in Monmouth County NJ is one such place. Everyone who lives in the area comes to understand this at some point. Word gets around to keep your distance and let them do their job, which protecting all of us. Thank you for your service. (Civilians can be a pain in the butt sometimes, right?)
77 posted on 07/14/2019 7:13:11 PM PDT by jmacusa ("If wisdom is not the Lord, what is wisdom?''.)
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To: Kaslin
There is airtight security and then there are lapses.

In 1967, at the height of the Vietnam War, I got a summer job during college as a draftsman with the US Army Corps of Engineers--Military Design Section, in downtown Los Angeles. One day an engineer drove me out to Edwards Air Force Base, where it was 110°.

When we drove up to the first gate, we were stunned to find it wide open and unmanned--as was the second. We knew the location of the hangar we were to modify, so we drove straight to it. Inside we found a very experimental-looking fighter and a sergeant, seated at a desk and fast asleep.

78 posted on 07/14/2019 7:15:42 PM PDT by Hebrews 11:6 (Do you REALLY believe that (1) God IS, and (2) God IS GOOD?)
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To: Varda

Deadly force is authorized, but because of its nature, Groom Lake gets a ton of idiots showing up compared to most secure areas. And because it’s surrounded by mountains, it gets a fair number of people who decide to try and get a better view and end up hiking too far and end up trespassing . What they do is scare them away with the “camo dudes” or call the local sheriff. Just because they “can” doesn’t mean that’s what they actually do.

The guy who got shot this year at the Nevada National Security Site sped past the guard gate, then got out holding a cylindrical object. That’s a very different situation from your usual trespasser.


79 posted on 07/14/2019 7:15:48 PM PDT by Stravinsky
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To: Kaslin

“Do you really think they wouldn’t give the order to just start ripping the crowd up with weapons? That’s an awfully big assumption to literally bet your life on.
Our Air Force and other military officers take the same oath as most elected officials. They will protect against “all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Don’t become one of those domestic enemies. You won’t like how it ends”

That’s a lot of big talk. They are doing nothing about the Mexican invasion. So they are gonna use Warthogs on us? BS.


80 posted on 07/14/2019 7:17:54 PM PDT by DesertRhino (Dog is man's best friend, and moslems hate dogs. Add that up. ....)
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