During the Cold War, American authorities tested Soviet combat aircraft and other weapons in the so-called Area 51, which previously had a reputation as a real "UFO base", writes The Guardian.
The Area 51 report was published thanks to the Freedom of Information Act passed by the US Congress in 2005. From declassified documents, journalists learned that the American military, in particular, tested the Soviet MiG-21 fighter at a secret base, which in 1966. Israel handed them over.
MiG 17 over Nevada, accompanied by American Skyhawks (photo: National Security Archive)
In 1968. the Americans tested this aircraft, evaluating it in terms of technical characteristics and capabilities, and calculating how effectively it can withstand combat aircraft and other US weapons. Similar studies were carried out a year later in relation to the Soviet MiG-17 fighter.
Later, the Americans tested other MiG aircraft in Zone 51, but the details of these tests are still classified.
In addition to fighters, the US military "tried their best" and other types of weapons of the USSR. So, they created air defense systems that are close to Soviet ones in their characteristics. American pilots learned to counter such weapons on the territory of "Area 51".
We will remind, the CIA officially recognized the existence of "Area 51" only in August this year. This object, due to its secrecy, has long been the subject of all sorts of speculation and has attracted the attention of paranormal researchers and fans of conspiracy theories. It was assumed that in "Area 51" experiments on aliens and studies of extraterrestrial objects are being conducted.
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However, according to the published documents, everything was much more prosaic. Area 51, located a few hundred kilometers northwest of Las Vegas, turned out to be just an airfield for testing experimental aircraft and weapons systems. In particular, the Lockheed U-2 reconnaissance aircraft was tested there.