In July 1986, a Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk crashed in California’s Sequoia National Forest, and the U.S. Air Force quickly sprang into action to cover it up. To protect the secrecy of the highly classified stealth jet, officials went as far as planting debris from another aircraft—a McDonnell F-101A Voodoo—at the crash site to mislead anyone who might investigate.
However, instead of calming the situation, these cover-up efforts only made people more curious. The military’s determination to hide the truth fueled public speculation and increased efforts by outsiders to figure out what was so important that it needed to be concealed.
Mysterious crash in Sequoia National Forest
On July 11, 1986, the U.S. Air Force was testing the F-117 Nighthawk, a top-secret aircraft at the time. Around 2:00 AM, the plane crashed over Sequoia National Forest, killing the pilot and starting a brush fire that burned about 150 acres. Firefighters from Kern County and the U.S. Forest Service eventually got the fire under control.
After the crash, the Air Force quickly locked down the area near Kern River Canyon and declared the surrounding airspace off-limits. This was done to prevent anyone from seeing the crash site or learning about the classified aircraft.
A spokesperson for the Kern County Sheriff’s Office explained, “The whole area has been restricted, including the air space above the crash site. There will be military aircraft in the area, and anyone entering the area will be dealt with appropriately by the Air Force.”
The Air Force released a short statement confirming that a U.S. military aircraft had crashed in the Sequoia National Forest and that a team of officers would investigate. “That’s the guidance we’ve been given from Washington,” said Staff Sgt. Lorri Wray. “We can’t give out any details.”
When pressed for more details, a Pentagon spokesperson would only reveal that the aircraft was “not a bomber.”
Replacing the F-117 Nighthawk with an F-101A Voodoo
After the F-117 Nighthawk crashed, US Air Force personnel quickly collected the debris and replaced it with wreckage from an old F-101A Voodoo, which had been stored at Area 51. The F-101A had been retired from Air Force service in 1972 and from the Air National Guard in 1982.
The crash quickly drew public attention, leading many to believe the aircraft had come from Edwards Air Force Base in California, just 65 miles away. This theory gained traction because Edwards was known for testing advanced aircraft, including experimental designs, new bombers, and modified planes.
Some of the aircraft tested there included the Northrop F-20 Tigershark and the Rockwell B-1 Lancer.
Sources incorrectly reveal the aircraft was an F-19
On the day of the crash, the Associated Press published a report in which International Arms Combat editor Andy Lightbody shared that unnamed sources claimed the downed aircraft was an F-19. Though never officially acknowledged by the U.S. Air Force, the “F-19” has long been a source of fascination for military aviation enthusiasts.
The idea of a secret stealth aircraft called the F-19 emerged after the F-20 was announced. Since fighter jets were typically numbered in sequence, many assumed that the next aircraft after the F/A-18 Hornet would logically be the F-19. When the designation was skipped, speculation grew about a classified project.
The Air Force denied these rumors, explaining that the missing number was simply due to Northrop’s request to name its Tigershark the F-20. Despite this explanation, some remain convinced that the F-19 was real and may have been quietly developed under Lockheed’s oversight.
Unveiling the F-117 Nighthawk
The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk was developed in the 1970s after the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) ran a study showing that U.S. aircraft were more vulnerable to enemy defenses than expected. In response, DARPA launched a competition for a new stealth fighter design, which was ultimately won by Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works division.
The F-117 underwent its first test flight in 1981, and deliveries to the U.S. Air Force began the following year. Although it became operational just two years later, the plane remained highly secret, with the military only officially revealing its existence to the public in 1988. Civilians got their first actual look at the aircraft two years after that.
During its service, only 64 F-117s were built, including five prototypes. The aircraft saw combat in the Gulf War and later in the Yugoslav Wars, where one was famously shot down by a surface-to-air missile (SAM). The F-117 was officially retired in 2008 and replaced by the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, though a fleet of Nighthawks is still maintained in flying condition today.
F-117 Nighthawk specs
Designed to deflect radar, the F-117 Nighthawk featured angled panels coated with radar-absorbing material, making the aircraft virtually invisible on-screen. It was capable of reaching a maximum speed of Mach 0.92, thanks to its two General Electric F404-F1D2 turbofan engines, and had a range of 1,070 miles.
The F-117 was equipped with two internal weapons bays with one hardpoint each, which allowed it to carry an array of explosives: the B61 nuclear bomb, the GBU-31 JDAM INS/GPS guided munition, the GBU-10 Paveway II laser-guided bomb, the GBU-27 Paveway III laser-guided bomb and the GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bomb, all with varying types of warheads.
Other important features were that the F-117 had a V-tail and was air refuelable. Additionally, it was operated through the use of quadruple-redundant fly-by-wire flight controls, which had been derived from those used by the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, the F/A-18 Hornet, the McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle and the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.
More from us: Blohm & Voss BV 141: The Asymmetrical German Aircraft That Shouldn’t Have Been Able to Fly – But Did
Flown primarily by the US Air Force, the stealth fighter was operated by the 412th Test Wing out of Edwards Air Force Base; the 4450th Tactical Group and 37th Tactical Fighter Wing out of Tonopah Test Range, in Nevada; and the 49th Fighter Wing out of Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico.