The Impossible Airplane with a Ridiculous Requirement to Fly It

On May 24, 1963, after his aircraft malfunctioned while flying from Area 51, test pilot Kenneth Collins successfully ejected from his aircraft and crashed near Wendover, Utah.

Passing by, a truck driver pulled him out of his canopy and offered to take him home. But the pilot refused, saying his F-105 was loaded with nuclear weapons. So the driver brought him to a nearby highway patrol office instead.

Avoiding arousing too much suspicion, he called back to his people at Area 51.

Once back home later that evening, test pilot Collins was acting strange. His wife Jane, a very understanding woman, did not make a fuss when her husband couldn't explain his condition.

But Ken Collins was forbidden to talk about it. He appeared to be very drunk, as the truth serum was still in his system.

News articles and official records from that day reported an F-105 Thunderchief had crashed. The cover-up efforts were successful – neither Mrs. Collins nor the general public would learn about the CIA's A-12 Oxcart for 30 more years.

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