A US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bomber crashed shortly after takeoff at Edwards Air Force Base - California
A US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bomber crashed shortly after takeoff at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Monday, June 15, 2026, killing all eight people on board.
A routine test mission at Edwards Air Force Base turned tragic when a US Air Force B-52H Stratofortress crashed moments after takeoff, killing all eight people on board.
The aircraft, identified by tail number 60-0061, took off at around 11:20 a.m. local time for a mission supporting the radar modernization program. Shortly after takeoff, it went down and erupted into flames.
Edwards Air Force Base said in a 3:20 p.m. local time update that the aircraft was carrying eight people and that initial indications suggested the crash was not survivable. Emergency response teams were at the scene, while officials worked to account for all personnel.
Col. James Hayes, deputy commander of the 412th Test Wing, said at a press conference, "We lost eight great Americans" in the crash, calling it a horrible tragedy. Officials deemed the crash unsurvivable after reviewing footage of the incident.
Who was on board?
The crew was a mix of uniformed military personnel, government civilians, and government contractors. Boeing, which manufactures the B-52, confirmed two of its employees were on the flight and said the company was in contact with their families and offering support.
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The Aftermath
Emergency crews responded immediately, and the crash left a towering black plume of smoke over the base. Aerial footage later showed barely any recognizable wreckage; aerial footage taken shortly after the crash showed a large smoldering burn mark on the land, and video from FoxNews showed the runway left with a large blackened scar on the sandy ground along with residual smoke, with no distinct parts of the wreckage visible.
https://x.com/FoxNews/status/2066611237652156525
ABC7's helicopter flew over the runway and found the charred debris of the bomber largely reduced to ash.
The base announced at 12:48 p.m. that the airfield was closed, all inbound aircraft were being diverted, and non-commercial visitor passes were suspended so the installation could focus entirely on emergency response operations. The base said it would stand down all operations on Tuesday. By evening, the base had reopened, though operations remained stood down through Tuesday.
Reaction
https://x.com/SecAFOfficial/status/2066683473792745617
Secretary of the Air Force Troy E. Meink and House Speaker Mike Johnson both shared condolences on social media, while California Governor Gavin Newsom offered sympathies to the Edwards Air Force Base community and thanked first responders.
https://x.com/SpeakerJohnson/status/2066691038815662462
What the mission involved
The B-52 was performing a test in support of the radar modernization program. In December 2025, the base had said the aircraft flew from Port San Antonio after receiving an upgraded radar system as part of this ongoing modernization effort, with the flight intended to support an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar upgrade. Separately, Boeing had announced in December 2025 that it delivered the first B-52 Radar Modernization Program flight-test aircraft to the Air Force for testing at Edwards, fitted with an APQ-188 AESA radar system similar to those used on fighter aircraft, intended to improve situational awareness, speed up target identification, and enhance aircrew survivability in contested environments.
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Investigation
The cause was not immediately known. Aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti, a former crash investigator for the FAA and NTSB, said the speed and manner of the crash so soon after takeoff suggested some kind of flight control malfunction, though he cautioned it was too early to say for certain possibilities include improperly rigged controls after maintenance, a catastrophic engine failure, or a failure in equipment being tested.
Officials expect the formal investigation to take time. Col. Hayes said the probe could take an estimated six months, and other outlets reported similarly that the investigation process could take upwards of six months.
This was the first B-52 crash since 2016, when one went down at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, injuring all seven crew members aboard (none died in that incident). It is also the deadliest B-52 crash since 1982, when one crashed at Mather Air Force Base in Sacramento County, California, killing all nine people aboard.
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About Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards is home to a large share of the Air Force's aircraft test and development work and sits about 100 miles north of Los Angeles. The 412th Test Wing, which runs the base, conducts developmental testing of Air Force aircraft, weapons systems, software and components throughout their service life. Retired US Navy commander and P-3 pilot Richard Kolko noted that "if it flies, it's tested at Edwards Air Force Base," and that the base has some of the best test pilots and engineers, with test flights typically crewed by experienced pilots alongside civilian engineers or manufacturer personnel as needed, plus a robust emergency response team.
About the B-52 fleet
The Air Force currently operates 76 B-52H Stratofortress bombers — 54 active-duty and 18 Air Force Reserve aircraft — with about a dozen more held in long-term storage at the Davis-Monthan boneyard for parts or potential reactivation. The fleet is undergoing a broader modernization push that includes replacing the aging TF33 engines with Rolls-Royce F130s in a $15 billion effort, alongside the new radar system, with upgraded aircraft eventually to be redesignated B-52J once the program is complete.