Fear gripped Edwards Air Force Base on Monday after a US B-52 bomber crashed shortly after takeoff in California, with officials saying all eight people on board are believed to have died. Images from the scene pointed to the scale of the destruction, showing the aftermath of an intense fire that appeared to consume the aircraft.
The bomber went down around lunchtime at the base, one of the US military’s key operational hubs, about 95km north of Los Angeles.
- Advertisement -
“An Air Force B-52 Stratofortress carrying eight people on a routine test mission crashed today shortly after takeoff at 11.20am (7.20pm Irish time). Initial indications are that the crash was not survivable,” said a statement from Edwards Air Force Base.
“Emergency response personnel are on scene, and officials are working to account for all personnel,” the statement said, adding that the crash was under investigation.
“All non-commercial visitor passes have been suspended until further notice to allow the installation to focus entirely on emergency response operations.”
A spokesman from the base declined to provide additional details.
Aerial video from above the site showed a broad swath of scorched ground.
Almost nothing of the aircraft appeared to remain intact. A journalist reporting from a broadcast helicopter described a “large plume” of black smoke rising in the immediate aftermath of the crash.
Several emergency vehicles were visible near the expansive burned area.
The B-52 is a heavy bomber that first took to the skies in 1954 and was initially built for a potential war with the Soviet Union.
Successive upgrades have kept the aircraft flying for decades beyond the end of the Cold War.
The bomber — capable of carrying a range of weapons, including bombs and cruise missiles — has a wingspan of 56 meters and measures 48 meters in length.
The aircraft is typically operated by a crew of five: an aircraft commander, a pilot, a radar navigator, a navigator and an electronic warfare officer, according to a US Air Force fact sheet on the plane.
With a combat range of up to 8,800 miles, the aircraft is able to carry a nuclear payload.
The United States has used the bomber in conflicts in Vietnam, the Gulf, Iraq, Afghanistan, and most recently in Iran.
