Military personnel and Boeing employees among 8 killed in B-52 crash at Edwards AFB

Military personnel, government civilians and two Boeing employees were among the eight people killed when a B-52 bomber crashed shortly after takeoff from Edwards Air Force Base in California, according to officials.

The crash happened at about 11:20 a.m. on the Edwards airfield during a local test mission for the B-52 radar modernization program, Col. James Hayes said at a briefing on Monday afternoon. The aircraft took off and crashed almost immediately, bursting into flames.

“Today, Edwards Air Force Base experienced a horrible tragedy, and we lost eight great Americans,” Hayes said at the briefing. “This crash is deemed to be unsurvivable, and right now our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those that lost their loved ones.”

Hayes said the crew included military personnel, government civilians and government contractors who were supporting the test mission. Boeing said two of its employees were among those on board.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones of the eight crew members who lost their lives in the B-52 crash at Edwards Air Force Base, California,” Boeing said in a statement. “It is with great sadness that we confirm two Boeing employees were among those on board.”

Hayes said first responders quickly cordoned off the crash site and began putting out the flames. The crash was fully contained within Edwards Air Force Base on the runway, and there was no indication of damage outside the installation.

Officials were notifying next of kin on Monday, a process Hayes said would continue through the day.

The cause of the crash is not known. Hayes said the Air Force is standing up an interim safety board to begin gathering facts, followed by a safety investigation board and then an accident investigation board. The full process could take up to six months.

The airfield was closed after the crash, and all inbound aircraft were diverted, according to an earlier update from the base. Officials also suspended non-commercial visitor passes for several hours while the base focused on emergency response operations.

The B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range strategic bomber that has been used by the U.S. Air Force for decades and is capable of carrying conventional and nuclear weapons.

Edwards Air Force Base, located in the Mojave Desert northeast of Los Angeles, is one of the Air Force’s most important flight test centers and has long been used for experimental aircraft, weapons testing and aerospace research.