In all, about forty patches are known to be related to the aircraft. These included patches related to individual test programs. Even the C-5 flight crews that picked up the completed aircraft at Burbank had their patch — a black circle with a white crescent moon and a large question mark. On a tab at the top of the patch was 'DON'T ASK!' while another tab at the bottom carried the enigmatic letters 'NOYFB.'[446]) And then there was the plane's designation. Pilots flying Black airplanes at Groom Lake logged their flight time with the code '117.' When the Senior Trend began to fly, Lockheed started referring to it as '117' until the actual designation could be given. When Lockheed printed the first copies of the Dash One Pilot's Manual, F-117A was printed on the cover.[447] For year after year, the 'F- 117A' remained secret. But it was a secret that was proving harder and harder to keep.
The incoming Reagan administration increased the secrecy surrounding the stealth program. Although several projects would remain unknown for a decade and more, the effort was not entirely successful with the stealth fighter.
In June 1981, an article
The plane also acquired a 'designation.' Since the Northrop F-5G had been redesignated 'F-20' in 1982 and the previous fighter was the F/A-18, it was assumed that 'F-19' was the (secret) designation of the stealth fighter.[450]
By 1983, artists' conceptions of the F-19 began to appear. The general pattern was a long SR-71-like fuselage, elliptical wings at the rear, a bubble canopy, canards, and twin inward-canted fins. As it was now known the SR-71 had a reduced RCS, it was assumed the 'F-19' was similar.[451]
In November 1983,
These accounts were in the technical press and so had little impact on the public. This changed in May 1986, when the F-19 arrived at the local hobby shop.
Among those following the stealth story was the Testers Corporation. In 1985, they began work on a conceptual model of the F-19. The design was based on technical data, such as the
The design was well thought-out, looking like 'a high-tech water beetle.' It had inwardly canted rudders, curved surfaces, and blended air inlets. Testers was even able to test it in a San Diego defense contractor's RCS test range.
This indicated problems with the intakes, which were corrected in the final design.[453]
The basic flaw was that it followed the SR-71 idea of stealth, and the report that the F-19 had a double delta wing platform like the space shuttle.
Although it was described as being about '80 percent accurate,' only two features were correct — the pilot tube and the platypus exhaust.[454] Yet only Lockheed and the F-117 pilots knew. With the rest of the world, the F-19 kit was an immediate best seller. In the next eighteen months, nearly 700,000 copies were sold.[455]
The model also figured in congressional hearings. In late June 1986, two Lockheed engineers made accusations that hundreds of documents, photos, films, and tapes were missing. Representative John D. Dingell (D-Michigan) accused Lockheed of falsifying document audits to cover up the problem.[456] Dingell, as chairman of the oversight and investigation subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, held hearings on the alleged security leaks on the F-19.
During the hearings, a model of the Testors F-19 was passed around.
Representative Ronald Wyden (D-Oregon) righteously complained, 'It's bizarre. What I, as a member of Congress, am not even allowed to see is ending up in model packages.'[457] Some officials complained that Dingell's hearings and the resulting publicity had unnecessarily compromised the program.[458] In the meantime, a greater, more tragic compromise had taken place.
The night operations of the 4450th Tactical Group continued to have an adverse effect on its pilots. One F- 117 pilot later noted, 'Each and every pilot in this group deals with being tired.' This was made worse with the summer and the shorter flying hours. Part of the problem was the
Lieutenant Colonel John F. Miller, one of the three squadron commanders, wrote a memo on Thursday, July 10, 1986, (the last flying night of the weekly cycle). He noted, 'I believe that these extended hours are taking their toll on overall pilot performance. I have detected more and more instances of poor judgment that weren't evident 2–3 months ago.' He cited unpredictable physical reactions to the continued stress, and 'a major problem with fatigue-induced burnout that is getting worse with time.' He added, 'if we liken our usual late-go to a time-bomb waiting to go off, then our extended summer hours are accelerating the countdown to zero. I believe we are on a collision course with a mishap.' Lieutenant Colonel Miller recommended that the pilots be forced to take 'extra time off every two or three weeks.'
As Miller was writing his memo, Maj. Ross E. Mulhare was preparing to fly a late-go mission. Mulhare had been declared mission ready in the F-117A on March 18, 1986. He was developing a new tactics training concept for the aircraft. Although an experienced pilot, he had a total of only fifty-three and a half hours in the plane. As he got ready, Mulhare told a colleague that he was tired and 'just couldn't shake it.'
Mulhare took off from TTR at 1:13 A.M. PDT, July 11, 1986, in F-117A number 792. He flew northwest to the town of Tonopah, then headed southwest and climbed to 20,000 feet. The night was clear and dark, with no moon. After crossing the Sierra Nevadas, Mulhare turned south along the eastern edge of the San Joaquin Valley. During the flight, Mulhare was in contact with the Los Angeles and Oakland Centers. He received permission to descend to 19,000 feet. As he neared Bakersfield, Mulhare turned southeast, requested a descent to 17,000 feet, and canceled his instrument flight plan at 1:44 A.M.
On the ground, Andy Hoyt, his sister Lisa, and her sixteen-year-old son, Joey, had pulled over at a rest stop. Hoyt saw 'three red lights and a dark image behind them like an upside-down triangle.' Hoyt got out his camera and took two or three photos before the object disappeared behind a hill. Suddenly, a pair of explosions 'lit up the sky like it was daylight out.'[459]
F-117A number 792 had slammed into a hillside in the Sequoia National Forest, about fifteen nautical miles from Bakersfield. Major Ross E. Mulhare was killed in the crash.[460]
An air force search party soon arrived and ordered all civilians out of the area.[461] The crash site was declared a national security area — no unauthorized people could enter the site, and no planes could fly within five miles of the crash site at altitudes below 8,500 feet. When Hoyt called Edwards Air Force Base to report what he had seen, the air force brought the three of them to a command post near the crash site. The film was developed, and two sets of prints were returned, minus the shots of the aircraft.[462]
