All eight people who were on a U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber that crashed at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Monday are presumed dead, officials said.
The crash occurred during a “routine test mission” just after 11 a.m. Monday, and “initial indications are that the crash was not survivable,” military officials said in a statement.
The identities of those on board were not immediately available, nor was a cause for the crash, which is under investigation.
News of a crash began to circulate on social media Monday morning after a huge plume of smoke appeared to be rising from the remote Air Force base, visible from pockets of the high desert in northern Los Angeles County.
The Air Force base initially only confirmed that a B-52 Stratofortress crashed “shortly after takeoff” on the base’s airfield at 11:20 a.m.
“Emergency crews immediately responded to the scene and the situation is ongoing,” a spokesperson for the base said in a statement.
Soon after, the base said the airfield had been closed and all inbound aircraft were being diverted. Visitor passes were also being suspended for the day “to focus entirely on emergency response operations,” the update said.
At a press conference Monday afternoon, Colonel James Hayes said the next of kin were being notified.
“We lost eight great Americans. This crash is deemed to be unsurvivable, and right now, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those who lost their loved ones,” Hayes told reporters.
It wasn’t immediately clear what agencies were responding to the incident, but Edwards Air Force Base has its own fire department, with five fire stations located across the base.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department said it was not currently responding to any incidents at the base. The Kern County Fire Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Edwards Air Force Base is located primarily in rural southeast Kern County, but part of the base stretches into east San Bernardino County and north L.A. County, not far from Lancaster.
The B-52 Stratofortress is described by the military as a “long-range, heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions,” known as the “backbone of the manned strategic bomber force for the United States.”
There are typically at least five crew members on such a plane, including an aircraft commander, pilot, radar navigator, navigator and electronic warfare officer, according to the U.S. Air Force.
Officials as of Monday afternoon were still working to account for everyone involved in the crash.
