A U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber flies during the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition 2023 at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, South Korea in October 2023. (Kim In-chul/Yonhap via AP)
A B-52 bomber with a crew of eight crashed shortly after takeoff Monday, June 15 at Edwards Air Force Base in California, the base said on Facebook.
“Initial indications are that the crash was not survivable,” the base said in a statement.
Officials were trying to account for all personnel, the base also said.
“It is with great sadness that we can confirm the tragic death of eight of our teammates today at Edwards AFB following the crash of a B-52 Stratofortress,” Lt. Gen. Linda Hurry, commander of Air Force Materiel Command, said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones.”
AFMC is headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
An Air Force B-52 Stratofortress crashed shortly after takeoff on the Edwards airfield at 11:20 a.m., the base had said earlier. “Emergency crews immediately responded to the scene and the situation is ongoing. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
On X, the base also said that its airfield had been closed, and all inbound aircraft were being diverted.
“All non-commercial visitor passes have been suspended until further notice to allow the installation to focus entirely on emergency response operations,” Edwards said on X.
The historic B-52 is managed by the Bombers Directorate at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, a directorate which oversees the life cycle of the service’s fleet of more than 150 aircraft bombers, a fleet that includes the B-1, B-2, and the new B-21.
The B-52 entered service for the Air Force in early 1955.
Last month, the Life Cycle Management Center said the plane was a step closer to a new engine, with the B-52J Commercial Engine Replacement Program hitting a Critical Design Review milestone, a “pivotal milestone,” the center said. The effort is also overseen by teams at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma.
The program aims to replace the bomber’s original 1960s-era TF33 engines, keeping the plane in the nation’s long-range strike arsenal through 2050 and beyond — about a century after the plane started flying, the center said at the time.
Monday’s crash was under investigation, Edwards said.