The Philadelphia Experiment

   Ever since I was little, I have been surrounded by science fiction and conspiracy theories. My dad is an honest man who has recently been bumping around from job to job due to health issues, but means well. He loves sci-if and abnormal stuff, is an abstract artist of at least decent skill, and loves to find the truth behind the matter (whatever that matter may be). I take a point to decide for myself what I think worthy of belief, but there is one story that has always fascinated me. It is known as the Philadelphia Experiment.
    There is some disagreement as to whether this actually occurred, and the stories that exist are diverse to say the least, but according to the accounts, the USS Eldridge (a Navy ship) went on one heck of a journey.
    You see, there is this Einstein theory that says something along the lines of if you can manage to move faster than light, you can travel anywhere and to any time. Yes, this is meaning a time machine with transportation capabilities, and it would be completely invisible to boot.
    Naturally, the Navy was interested, at the time being in the middle of WWII. So, as the story goes, the USS Eldridge traveled to Philadelphia PA, where it was given the equipment that would make such a time machine necessary. The ship, after a few small test rounds of trying their cloaking (and supposedly succeeding on some small scale), they then went for the big one.
    According to all reports, this is where things get interesting. The ship disappeared, completely, and in a matter of seconds appeared in Norfolk, Virginia, where it remained for a little while until it disappeared from there and returned to Philadelphia, and supposedly losing 10 seconds in the process.
   The ship was in perfect condition, but not, according to the story, was the crew. Many had been found fused with the bulkhead itself, and one even found himself with his hand in the bulkhead and himself a deck below where he was previously. Some were simply missing, others dead. A few were mutilated, and many were insane. Some stories claim the men were then brainwashed to prevent the story from getting out.
   The Navy denies everything, claiming no tests were made upon the vessel. Some equipment was apparently put upon it to make it invisible to mines. The site gave the official route of the ship, as well as a small label at the bottom saying there really is no official, legitimate proof that has been found to support the supposed "Project Rainbow".
   So what do you think? A true conspiracy, or merely a good urban/war myth kept alive by men still living in their mom's basement? Personally, I don't know what to make of it, but I would love to hear your opinion on this.