I Could Tell You But Then You Would Have to be Destroyed by Me: The Pentagon’s Black World

Ralph Nader has placed the full text and images of Trevor Paglen’s I Could Tell You But Then You Would Have to be Destroyed by Me online.

I have been waiting years for a release such as this...at times I have spent hours and hours online searching for these various projects, and the patches...

Now presented in one tidy location....
The Questions are endless, and I have only just started!

Dont miss this! Take a look, your mind will be unbrideled!
Oh...and dont have too much fun...you might not be able to sleep at night!
Cheers!

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A Few of my favorites...

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G.H.O.S.T.

One of the more recent patches from the "Ghost Squadron" based at Groom Lake. The design of the skull's helmet indicates that "Ghost" is a helicopter unit. The footprints on the helmet mark the trace of the "Jolly Green Giant," a symbol that represents helicopter search and rescue missions. This patch also seems to indicate that "G.H.O.S.T." is an acronym for the unit. The meaning of the acronym is unclear.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/bb00a1a01f08.gif[/atsimg]

BIRD OF PREY

The Bird of Prey was a highly classified technology demonstrator that first flew at Groom Lake in 1996. Built by a secretive division of McDonnell Douglas (later acquired by Boeing) known as the "Phantom Works," the aircraft was flown by Boeing pilots Rudy Haug and Joe Felock. Doug Benjamin of the secret Special Projects Flight Test Squadron was the only Air Force pilot to fly the aircraft.

Although the shape of the plane was secret in 1996, the Bird of Prey patch contained an important clue. When Boeing declassified the Bird of Prey's existence in 2002, it became obvious that the handle of the sword was essentially the same shape as the aircraft. This distinctive sword has since become incorporated into the symbolism of the Special Projects Flight Test Squadron.

www.naderlibrary.com...

Sampling of some other Patches:

GRIM REAPERS
Grim Reapers was the nickname of the 4451st Test Squadron, which operated under the 4450th Tactical Group at the Tonopah Test Range during the 1980s. The unit's mission was to fly a squadron of classified stealth fighters.

When the Pentagon announced the existence of the stealth fighter program in the late 1980s, the Grim Reapers were redesignated as the 416th Tactical Fighter Squadron. After the Grim Reapers' existence became public, the Air Force forced the unit to change their name, as it did not pass the Air Force's requirements for good taste. The Grim Reapers thus became the Ghost Riders.

PROCUL ESTE PROFANI —SPECIAL PROJECTS

This patch is from the 416th Flight Test Squadron's Special Projects Flight working on advanced technologies for the F-16 Combined Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base.

The phrase Procul Este Profani is usually associated with Virgil's epic poem The Aeneid. When Apollo arrives at the Temple of Apollo, the prophet Sibyl utters the words "Procul, O procul este profane" before the pair descend into Hades, where Aeneas is told about the future of Rome.

Members of the unit translate the phrase as "Keep your distance, you who are uninitiated."

www.naderlibrary.com...

www.naderlibrary.com...

[edit on 6-6-2009 by burntheships]

Have fun kids!

The amount of money spent on secret Pentagon projects—the so-called “black budget”—has reached unprecedented levels in the past few years. This level of hidden military spending translates into a variety of extremely peculiar built environments and landscapes. From the popular phenomenon of “Area 51,” to discreet locales like the Helendale Avionics Facility, the Southwest is littered with places where the military develops, tests, and operates technologies that “do not exist.” Among industry insiders, these clandestine infrastructures and secret bases are collectively known as the “black world.”

www.sfbg.com...
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/438d938b1fd5.gif[/atsimg]

GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT MILITARY SPACEPLANE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM

This patch is from the Phillips Laboratory Military Spaceplane Technology (MIST) Program Office at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico.

The original version of the patch sported an "X-Wing" fighter from the Star Wars movies. When lawyers representing George Lucas delivered the unit a cease and desist order, the aircraft on the patch was changed into the shape that appears on this patch.

[edit on 6-6-2009 by burntheships]

Thank you, this stuff is fascinating. A friend of mine who work in the air force putting together ordinance gave me a holographic coin that switched from the statue of liberty I believe to the grim reaper with the writing "giving the enemy an opportunity to die for their country". As I enjoy cyphers and and the info that is put right out there in the open for us to see I can't help but get pissed off that these govt. entities have the audacity to flaunt how little the public knows right in front of our faces. S&F

reply to post by Jnewell33


PLease post pics here, it would be great to take alook at this coin.

Also, to the OP, thank you for posting something so interesting, it has been a while since a thread like this has come up.

reply to post by Jnewell33


Oh Yeah...we want to see too!


Workers commute from Las Vegas to secret military bases each morning in unmarked 737s.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/1be727113d02.gif[/atsimg]

www.naderlibrary.com...

Very cool stuff!

Your right, it raises questions as to what the patches mean, who wore them, and what they did on a daily basis.

Thanks for posting.

S/F

Also may show how compartmentalized all this stuff is.

Nice post do we have any verification that this stuff is true, or did someone just make it up.

reply to post by MR BOB


Thanks! interesting beyond belief!

reply to post by David9176


Yeah guess that is the part they cant tell us about...where they spend all of the money...
reply to post by andy1033


Hummm that kind of proof you are looking for...could get you offed.
I dont have it...and they arent telling! But, there is enough peripheral to be assured it happens. Take a look at the patch below...notice the name...and the alien symbol in the middle. A lifetime of Silence!

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/da640f62680a.gif[/atsimg]

The origins and purpose of this patch remain obscure. The green figure holding the sword (or dagger) wears the cloak-and dagger garb often associated with black projects. There is a star in the northern hemisphere under the letter "S" and another red star in the American Southwest. The red star might refer to an operating location, but the patch provides no real clue as to where it might be. The Southwest is home to numerous classified units. Air Force Space Command in Colorado; Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico; White Sands, New Mexico; Groom Lake, Nevada; and the Tonopah Test Range are all possibilities, and there are many more.

The words "A Lifetime of Silence" no doubt refer to the fact that members of this unit or project cannot speak about what they do. The image of a "Green Door" is also obscure. Military intelligence officers have a tradition of working behind locked green vault doors, but the symbol is widely used in popular culture to designate an inaccessible place.

In Mary E. Wilkins-Freeman's 1917 novel The Green Door, a young girl named Letitia longs to open a mysterious little green door in her house, but her aunt forbids it with the words "It is not best for you, my dear." The 1956 hit song "Green Door" is about a man who couldn't get into a party raging behind a green door.
www.naderlibrary.com...

reply to post by burntheships


Great post! Very interesting.. I have never looked into this before. I hope to learn more as you continue on!

reply to post by InnateNight


I am learning quite a bit myself!

Another couple of Black Ops project I would be extremely interested in learning more about...

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GRIM REAPERS

Grim Reapers was the nickname of the 4451st Test Squadron, which operated under the 4450th Tactical Group at the Tonopah Test Range during the 1980s. The unit's mission was to fly a squadron of classified stealth fighters.

When the Pentagon announced the existence of the stealth fighter program in the late 1980s, the Grim Reapers were redesignated as the 416th Tactical Fighter Squadron. After the Grim Reapers' existence became public, the Air Force forced the unit to change their name, as it did not pass the Air Force's requirements for good taste. The Grim Reapers thus became the Ghost Riders.[]ex]
www.naderlibrary.com...

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/7e9d4992d214.gif[/atsimg]

EW DIRECTORATE, TESTUM PONTUS VERATIS

The Electronic Warfare Directorate is the primary EW test organization at Edwards Air Force Base.

Electronic warfare consists of defensive and offensive avionics and includes the so-called "Infowar" revolution in military technologies. Commenting on information warfare, Air Force Chief of Staff John Jumper told Aviation Week and Space Technology that "we're rapidly approaching the time when you can tell an SA-10's [surface-to-air missile system] radar that it's a Maytag washer and put it in the rinse cycle instead of the firing cycle."

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EWAH

This patch is worn by people working for a unit descended from the 413th Flight Test Squadron. Elements of the former 413th FLTS became a part of the EW Directorate known by its organization code EWAH. Located at North Base at Edwards, EWAH has its own commanding officer who reports directly to the EW Directorate.

The collection of 5+1 stars recalls the nickname Area 51, the Air Force's classified "operating location" at Groom Lake.

www.naderlibrary.com...
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/23747916a3e6.gif[/atsimg]
symbol on the inside of the plane's cockpit shows a collection of five-plus-one stars. Image: USAF

[edit on 7-6-2009 by burntheships]

Cigar shaped UFO's ever interested anyone?
Hummm....read this!

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KILLER WHALE, DETERRITUM PER TESTANDUM SUPRA TERRAM

"Killer Whale" was a nickname for the AGM-137 Tri-Service Standoff Attack Missile, also known as TSSAM, which was a 1980s project to develop a stealth cruise missile. The name "Killer Whale" has a somewhat complicated history. In the early 1980s, Northrop developed a stealthy prototype aircraft codenamed "TACIT BLUE," which pioneered the use of rounded shapes for stealth aircraft. Because of the plane's unusual shape, it became known as the "Whale" or "Shamu," and the Northrop crews working on the project at Groom Lake became known as "whalers." After TACIT BLUE, which was unarmed, proved that this stealth technology was effective, Northrop began work on the Tri-Service Standoff Attack Missile, which was a variation on the TACIT BLUE design, and resembled the unusually-shaped stealth aircraft. Thus, while the unarmed TACIT BLUE was known as the "Whale," its cruise missile cousin became known as the "Killer Whale." The Latin phrase "Deterritum Per Testandum Supra Terram" is hard to decipher. The words vaguely translate as "Deterrence/Through/Witness/Above/Earth. Members of the test team choose to interpret it loosely as "Deterrence Through Flight Test."

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This one is rather thought provoking! What did they have to hide...and why were they doing it in the dark?

DON'T ASK —NOYFB

This patch is from the 22nd Military Airlift Squadron, who flew C-5 cargo aircraft out of Travis Air Force Base in Northern California. Part of the 22nd MAS' mission was to conduct late night operations picking up classified aircraft from aerospace plants in Southern California and delivering them to classified locations for testing and evaluation.

When the 22nd MAS undertook these missions, its crews would take off their everyday heraldry and Velcro this patch to their uniforms.

The black background and crescent moon on the patch probably represent the unit's night operations. The silver lining represents star light. The question mark signifies classified operations. The letters "NOYFB" stand for "None of Your F#g Business."

www.naderlibrary.com...

[edit on 9-6-2009 by burntheships]

reply to post by burntheships


Wow! This is really interesting to read! I am giving you a S&F. Thanks for posting this!!

reply to post by sugarmonkey


Thanks!



I wonder what the "initation" is comprised of?
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/f52bfe7ae1b0.gif[/atsimg]
www.naderlibrary.com...

PROCUL ESTE PROFANI —SPECIAL PROJECTS

This patch is from the 416th Flight Test Squadron's Special Projects Flight working on advanced technologies for the F-16 Combined Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base.

The phrase Procul Este Profani is usually associated with Virgil's epic poem The Aeneid. When Apollo arrives at the Temple of Apollo, the prophet Sibyl utters the words "Procul, O procul este profane" before the pair descend into Hades, where Aeneas is told about the future of Rome.

Members of the unit translate the phrase as "Keep your distance, you who are uninitiated."

[edit on 10-6-2009 by burntheships]

reply to post by burntheships





Great thread, these types of thread are what made ATS, great job. Some very interesting patches, I wish I could know what they all did, esspecially the dragon one.

I have never seen a few of those patches, nor did I know there was a spaceplane program (publically acknowledged).

[edit on 6/10/2009 by jkrog08]

[edit on 6/10/2009 by jkrog08]

reply to post by burntheships


The "Behind the Green Door" patch is the best, I have no idea what that could mean. Although the "lifetime of silence" obviously conveys that it is a ultra-black project. The alien figure in the middle appears to be sitting on some chair with his (its) hands doing something, possibly driving or typing? I agree the red star is likely the base of operations, but the white star is unknown, although I have some speculations. It could relate to the Dulce base in New Mexico or it could possibly be a reference to the rumored 'jump rooms' in various super secret government facilities, although that is highly speculative.


I guess the real question here is what is behind the green door?

[edit on 6/10/2009 by jkrog08]

reply to post by jkrog08


I see that also, and the white areas seem to be continents...do you see that? If that is so...the continent the alien is on is green, the others are white...what do you make of that?

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F-22 LOW OBSERVABLES FLIGHT TEST, RAPTOR 4004-JUST PASSING THROUGH

This commemorative patch for a classified flight test of an F-22 Raptor aircraft at Groom Lake shares many symbols with the Special Projects Flight Test Squadron patch. The mascot here is a raptor wearing the clothes of a wizard (like those on the Special Projects Flight Test Squadron patch). The Greek letter sigma hangs from the figure's neck. The collection of six stars, again, is a reference to Area 51. The phrase "IdB" may reference the intended or actual radar cross section measurement of the aircraft. The words JUST PASSING THROUGH reference the fact that, for this test, the airplane had only to fly through the RCS measurement range while engineers collected data from monitoring stations on the ground.

www.naderlibrary.com...

Great post! S&F

I've always found these patches very interesting and wondered about their secret meanings behind some of the designs. Makes you want to take a look at a few of the NASA ones as well.

Great post! I love the patches and the history and meanings of them. Excellent work!