Tonopah Test Range

The Tonopah Test Range is located in central Nevada 30 miles South East of the the town of Tonopah. It is operated by the Air Force with Sandia National Laboratory.

Originally built to test missiles and nuclear weapons, it became the home of the Air Force's fleet of stealth fighters (F-117a) in 1983 when the aircraft became operational. Between 1983 and 1988, the existence of the F-117a was secret. During this time, the planes were only flown at night.

When the United States invaded Panama on December 20, 1989, stealth fighters flying from Tonopah dropped over 2,000 tons of bombs on Central America.

After a stint at "Tonopah East," constructed in Saudi Arabia for stealth fighter attacks during the first Gulf War, the fleet of F-117s was relocated to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico.

The base at Tonopah remains active, although it is unclear what kinds of activities are taking place there.