Area 51 ‘unmanned aircraft’ crash probed by Air Force, FBI — as claims rumors swirl

A mysterious aircraft crash near Nevada’s secretive Area 51 has triggered weeks of speculation, a military probe — and allegations of a government cover-up.

The incident occurred Sept. 23 on public land just outside the boundaries of the classified base at Groom Lake, about 83 miles north-northwest of Las Vegas, according to the Air Force and KLAS-TV, which reported on the crash Thursday.

A spokesperson for Creech Air Force Base confirmed the mishap involved an aircraft assigned to the 432nd Wing, which operates unmanned aerial vehicles.

No fatalities or injuries were reported, and recovery operations wrapped up Sept. 27, the base said.

But what followed — a base lockdown, flight restrictions and apparent tampering at the crash site — has fueled widespread rumors about what really fell from the sky.

The Air Force said investigators discovered “signs of tampering” during a follow-up site survey on Oct. 3, including an inert training bomb and an aircraft panel of unknown origin that were placed there after the crash.

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the FBI have launched a joint probe into the matter, according to the 432nd Wing’s public affairs office.

Creech officials have not released the model of the aircraft involved.

The FAA confirmed issuing a temporary flight restriction over a five-nautical-mile area east of Area 51 on the day of the crash “for national security reasons,” KLAS-TV reported on Sept. 25.

The restriction, which extended near a section of Nevada’s Highway 375 — nicknamed the Extraterrestrial Highway — remained in effect for more than a week, expiring Oct. 1.

Joerg Arnu, a longtime Area 51 researcher who runs the monitoring site DreamlandResort.com, told KLAS-TV that he was listening to Area 51 radio traffic that morning when security chatter suddenly intensified.

“I had my cup of coffee, and I am listening to Area 51 security, and all of the sudden they got very serious, and locked down the base,” Arnu told KLAS-TV.

Arnu said that he learned of a significant, secret air operation that was staged in the middle of the night that went awry.

“‘We just had an asset go down. We had an asset go down,’” Arnu recalled.

“This is not Creech security. This is Area 51 security, and they had an asset go down. Then the next thing you hear, UAV, unmanned aircraft, unmanned aircraft with ordnance.”

Soon afterward, large sections of the Tiikaboo Valley were sealed off by armed patrols, according to Arnu, who jumped in his truck and headed south from his home in Rachel, Nev., the town closest to Area 51, just 10 miles away.

When he attempted to approach using local backroads, Arnu said he encountered guards with rifles blocking access. He later saw sheriff’s deputies and a helicopter with a recovery basket positioned near the Groom Lake Road entrance.

“They had guns in front of them, not pointed at me, but very visibly in front of them, and it was clear they meant business,” Arnu said.

When Arnu tried to gain entry through an alternate route, he was also met with a contingent of armed sheriff’s deputies and military security.

“Almost the entire valley was shut down,” he said.

At that point, Arnu and other sleuths gave up for the night.

By the time locals ventured out again several days later, heavy machinery had carved a fresh dirt road leading to what appeared to be a debris field, Arnu said.

When he returned, the site had been buried under a thick layer of dirt.

Creech Air Force Base later acknowledged an “unmanned aircraft” was involved — but claimed unauthorized individuals had tampered with the crash scene by scattering unrelated debris.

That explanation drew skepticism from Arnu. “That’s absolutely bogus,” he told KLAS-TV.

“I think that was designed to make people not go there, discourage people from going there.”

The Dreamland Resort community — which includes former defense contractors and military veterans — speculated the downed craft may have been an experimental drone controlled by artificial intelligence.

Creech Air Force Base is home to the 432nd Wing, which flies MQ-9 Reaper drones and other classified unmanned systems.

The unit also tests next-generation UAVs designed to accompany advanced fighter jets.

The Post has sought comment from the FBI, the War Department and the Air Force.