Message posted by Peter Merlin (Member since 11/13/2003) on August 14, 2022 at 13:19:37 PST:
We are beginning to drift off-topic, LDP, but yes, the Groom Lake facility became Det 3, AFFTC following transfer from the CIA. AFFTC became AFTC in 2012, and so the organization at Groom Lake is now Det 3, AFTC. Ordinarily, a detachment (geographically separated unit of its parent organization) is relatively small (squadron size or smaller). Det 3, AFFTC, eventually are into a wing-sized organization comprising several groups and directorates. Continuing to refer to the classified test wing as a detachment or operating location obviates the need for maintaining official lineage and honors (reducing its paper trail footprint), and makes the organization appear less significant on paper than it actually is. Forcibly dragging the conversion back on topic, the Silent Hunters coin on eBay is from Det 3, 9th Operations Group, which later became Det 1, 69th Reconnaissance Group. For a while, in recent years, there was a completely unrelated Det 3, 9th OG, at Beale that was eventually inactivated and reconstituted as the 427th Reconnaissance Squadron. My main point is that there are many organizations called Det 3, but with different parent organizations. Obviously, the main one we are interested in here is a detachment of AFFTC/AFTC. As for your other OT question, I think I will simply echo Frank Murray in saying I can neither confirm nor deny any knowledge of "highly classified facilities or activities" in Ash Meadows.
In Reply to: Re: eBay - Wait. What? posted by LDP on August 14, 2022 at 8:18:02 PST:
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