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Janet (airline)

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A highly classified fleet of passenger aircraft, known unofficially as "Janet" and "Janet Airlines", is operated for the United States Department of the Air Force[1] as an employee shuttle to transport military, Department of Defense (DoD) civilians, and contractor employees to Special Access Program Facilities (SAPF). The airline mainly serves the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) (most notably Area 51 and the Tonopah Test Range) from a private terminal at Las Vegas's Harry Reid International Airport.[2]

Janet
Janet Boeing 737-66N registration N273RH landing in Las Vegas.
A Janet 737-600 over Las Vegas (2010)
IATA ICAO Call sign
— WWW JANET
Commenced operations
March 1972 (1972-03)
Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
HubsHarry Reid International Airport
Focus cities
Fleet size11
Destinations6
Parent companyDepartment of the Air Force (DAF)
HeadquartersLas Vegas, Nevada, U.S.

The airline's aircraft are generally unmarked aside from a red cheatline along the aircraft's windows.

History

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Area 51 was established in 1955 by the Central Intelligence Agency at Groom Lake in Nevada to serve as a secure test site for the Lockheed U‑2, a high‑altitude reconnaissance aircraft developed under deep secrecy. The remote desert location allowed engineers and pilots to test the aircraft’s capabilities far from public view.[3] To support operations at Area 51, regular flights were established to transport military and civilian personnel to the site from McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.[4]

The earliest known Janet flights were operated from 1972 by defense contractor EG&G, which supported the Atomic Energy Commission in the development of nuclear weapons at the Nevada Test Site. Flights were initially conducted by a single Douglas DC-6B (registration N6583C), which was later joined by a second aircraft in 1976.[4]

Douglas DC-6B N6583C in 1966 operating with Northeast Airlines, prior to its transfer to the Janet fleet in 1972

According to a former Area 51 employee, the Janet name is said to have originated from Richard 'Dick' Sampson, the CIA officer who oversaw Area 51 from 1969 to 1971. Sampson casually assigned his wife's name Janet as the air traffic control call sign for the flights. The nickname stuck, and Janet eventually became the informal name for the entire operation. Other theories surmise that Janet is an acronym for "Just Another Non-Existent Terminal" or "Joint Air Network for Employee Transportation".[5][6]

The 1980s saw the expansion of the fleet with the introduction of the Boeing 737-200, a first generation variant of the airliner. Three aircraft were delivered in 1980, which allowed the two DC-6B to be retired in 1981.[7] A further 737 was delivered in 1983 and three more in 1984, one of which left the fleet in 1986.[citation needed]

The fleet was later supplemented by Air Force T-43s de-modified to conventional transport configurations.[8][9]

As of November 2023, the U.S. Air Force is looking for a new civilian contractor to operate the Janet fleet. In a solicitation, they outline that a potential new operator would have to operate up to 190 flights per week.[10]

A Janet Boeing 737-66N taking off, with Mandalay Bay in the background
A Janet Boeing 737-600
A Janet 737-200 departing from Harry Reid International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada with the MGM Grand Las Vegas in the background

Operations

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Due to the airline's secretive nature, little is known about its organization. It is presently operated for the USAF by infrastructure and defense contractor Amentum through the company's acquisition of AECOM's defense contracting ventures. Originally the service was operated by EG&G, and later URS Corporation; this is mainly known as a result of periodic job openings published by URS and AECOM.[7][11] For example, in 2010, URS announced it would be hiring Boeing 737 flight attendants to be based in Las Vegas, requiring applicants to undergo a Single Scope Background Investigation in order to be able to obtain a security clearance.[11][12]

Due to its secrecy, Janet airlines boards at a standalone terminal on the west side of Harry Reid International Airport.[13]

Janet flights operate with a three-digit flight number and a WWW-prefix.[14] In the official publication of ICAO airline codes, this specific three-letter designator is listed as being blocked.[15] The primary airline callsign is simply "Janet," though flights transition to alternate callsigns, called Groom Callsigns once transferred over to Groom Lake from Nellis control. The name typically changes, and the number will be the last 2 digits of the flight number +15. For example, if the callsign were Janet 412 and were transferred to Groom Lake control, the callsign would be something like "Bunny 27".[citation needed]

Destination codes

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Due to its secrecy, Janet Airlines uses special codes for its destinations.[16] Even the location identifier frequently used as a destination/departure field - TKM (or KTKM internationally) - is not an ICAO code for an airport, but is likely used for Area 51.[17] This location identifier is listed as a tie-in facility for "Tonopah Test Range Base Ops" in FAA documentation, at least as recently as 2020.[18] Not all destination codes are known, but the following are listed:

Airport Code
U.S. Air Force Production Flight Test Installation (Plant 42) Station 1
Area 51 Station 3
Basecamp Station 6
Tonopah Test Range Station 7
Janet Terminal (Harry Reid International Airport) Station 9

Destinations

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Janet destinations, mostly military, include:[16]

Janet Airlines destinations
Country State City Airport Airport codes Notes Refs
IATA ICAO FAA LID
United StatesCaliforniaPalmdaleU.S. Air Force Production Flight Test Installation (Plant 42)PMDKPMDPMDAlso known as Palmdale Regional Airport, as they share the same runway. [16]
China LakeNaval Air Weapons Station China Lake—KNIDNID
EdwardsEdwards Air Force BaseEDWKEDWEDWJanet Airlines services the north base. [16]
NevadaGroom LakeHomey Airport—KXTA—More commonly known as Area 51. [16]
Las VegasHarry Reid International AirportLASKLASLASHub [16]
TonopahTonopah Test RangeXSDKTNXTNX[16]

Along with these destinations, there have been reports of Janet Airlines filing flight plans to many other airports.[19]

Fleet

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As of August 2025, Janet operates the following aircraft:[20]

As of 2015, the Janet fleet[21] consists of six Boeing 737-600s painted white with a prominent red cheatline. The fleet is registered to the Department of the Air Force (DAF), while some earlier aircraft were registered to several civil aircraft leasing corporations.[7] Before the arrival of the 737-600s, Janet operated Boeing 737-200s, some of which were modified from military T-43A aircraft. One of the 737-200s with registration N5177C in the 1980s was briefly based in Germany at Frankfurt International Airport (which was at the time also home to a USAF base, Rhein-Main Air Base), and operated by Keyway Air Transport, apparently a front company for a US government operation. It was retired on 6 March 2009.[7] Together with the other 737-200s, it was sent to AMARG at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona for storage.[22]

All Janet 737-600 aircraft were acquired from Air China, and four were previously operated by the now-defunct China Southwest Airlines before being acquired for US Air Force operations starting in 2008. The aircraft were initially taken to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base before being transferred to Las Vegas.[23]

One aircraft, a Beechcraft 1900, was lost on 16 March 2004, when it crashed on approach for Tonopah Test Range Airport after the pilot suffered sudden cardiac arrest. Five people, including the pilot, were killed in the accident.[24][25]

Current Janet Airlines fleet
Type Serial number Tail number C/N Owner Notes Refs
Boeing 737-66N28649N319BD887United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Boeing 737-66N28650N869HH932United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Boeing 737-66N28652N859WP938United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Boeing 737-66N29890N273RH1276United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Boeing 737-66N29891N365SR1294United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Boeing 737-66N29892N288DP1305United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Beechcraft B200CBL-54N654BA—United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Beechcraft B200CBL-61N661BA—United States Department of the Air Force[26][27][28]
Beechcraft B200CBL-62N662BA—United States Department of the Air Force[26][27]
Beechcraft B300C FL-93 N989RR — United States Department of the Air Force [29]
Beechcraft B300C FL-95 N910CB — United States Department of the Air Force [30]
Former Janet Airlines fleet
Type Serial number Tail number C/N Owner Fate Retired Refs
Beechcraft 1900CUB-37N27RA—United States Department of the Air ForceCrash16 March 2004[26][27][31]
Boeing 737-27520785N4529W335United States Department of the Air ForceRetired7 November 2008[26][27]
Boeing 737-25320694N5294M343United States Department of the Air ForceRetired26 January 2009[26][27]
Boeing 737-25320693N5177C340United States Department of the Air ForceRetired6 March 2009[26][27]
Boeing 737-25320691N5294E337United States Department of the Air ForceRetired17 April 2009[26][27]
Boeing 737-25320692N5176Y339United States Department of the Air ForceRetired17 July 2009[26][27]
Boeing 737-25320689N5175U334United States Department of the Air ForceRetired10 August 2009[26][27]
Douglas DC-6B45219N6583C—EG&GRetiredOctober 1981[26]

Accidents

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Aircraft Crash site Damage Route Description Time Fatalities Refs
Origin Destination
Beech 1900C
N27RA		 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Tonopah Test Range Airport W/O — Tonopah Test Range Airport During approach, the pilot reported runway-in-sight, and entered a circle pattern. The pilot then became incapacitated due to sudden cardiac arrest. During the turn, the plane entered a dive before crashing into the ground and bursting into flames as its fuel load ignited. It was later revealed the pilot suffered from high blood pressure, and had neglected to report it. 16 March 2004, 04:01 All 5 occupants [31]

References

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  1. ↑ "N5177C (1974 BOEING 737-200 owned by DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE) Aircraft Registration ✈ FlightAware". FlightAware.
  2. ↑ "Janet Airline / EG&G". Retrieved 21 September 2010.
  3. ↑ "The Area 51 File: Secret Aircraft and Soviet MiGs". National Security Archive. 29 October 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  4. 1 2 Krum, Collin (13 August 2015). "America's Secret Airline Flies Non-Stop To Area 51". Jalopnik. Static Media. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  5. ↑ Warnica, Richard (10 January 2018). "Janet, the mysterious airline that serves Area 51, is hiring. Applicants with top-secret clearance are preferred". National Post. Postmedia Network. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  6. ↑ Brean, Henry (11 January 2018). "Secret Las Vegas airline posted job ad for trips to Area 51". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "The Janet Fleet". Dreamland Resort. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  8. ↑ Hanson, Dana (7 October 2021). "Who Is the Mysterious Company "Janet Airlines?"". Money Inc. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  9. ↑ Brady, Chris (28 November 2020). "The T-43A". The Boeing 737 Technical Site. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  10. ↑ Everstine, Brian (7 November 2023). "U.S. Air Force Looking For New 'Janet' Operator". Aviation Week. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  11. 1 2 Contractflygirl.blogspot.com – archived copy of URS Corporation job opening.
  12. ↑ Archive.org – Archived copy of AECOM Corporation job opening.
  13. ↑ "Map and Aerial Photo of the Las Vegas Janet Terminal". dreamlandresort.com. Dreamland Resort. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  14. ↑ Flightaware.com – WWW224, page retrieved 21 February 2013
  15. ↑ ICAO Document 8585, Section 3: Three-Letter Designators.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Janet Schedule & Destinations". www.dreamlandresort.com. Dreamland Resort. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  17. ↑ "Unmarked Planes & Hidden Geographies : Trevor Paglen". vectors.usc.edu. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  18. ↑ Chiodini, Karen L (9 September 2020). "7350.9V Location Identifiers" (PDF). FAA. p. 406. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  19. ↑ "Janet Flight Schedules". dreamlandresort.com. Dreamland Resort. Archived from the original on 4 April 2007. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  20. ↑ "Global Airline Guide 2025 - Janet". Airliner World. September 2025. p. 81.
  21. ↑ Krum, Collin (13 August 2015). "America's Secret Airline Flies Non-Stop To Area 51". Jalopnik. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  22. ↑ Rainer Bexten – Airliners.net – Aerial photo taken at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base. Photo from 29 February 2012.
  23. ↑ Flightaware.com – Delivery flight of N288DP. Page retrieved 21 February 2013.
  24. ↑ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Beechcraft 1900C N27RA Tonopah-Test Range Airport, NV (XSD)". aviation-safety.net.
  25. ↑ Leadbeater, Chris (4 January 2018). "The top-secret US airline that you're not supposed to know about". The Telegraph. United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 "The Janet Fleet". dreamlandresort.com. Dreamland Resort. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Janet Tail Numbers". dreamlandresort.com. Dreamland Resort. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  28. ↑ N661BA call sign JANET01 on ADS-B Exchange
  29. ↑ N989RR call sign JANET09 on ADS-B Exchange
  30. ↑ N910CB call sign JANET10 on ADS-B Exchange
  31. 1 2 "ASN Beech 1900C N27RA crash". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
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