An investigation was continuing Wednesday to determine the cause of a B-52 bomber crash at Edwards Air Force Base that caused the deaths of eight people at the military installation near Kern, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties.
The B-52 Stratofortress was flying a routine test mission when it crashed shortly after takeoff Monday around 11:20 a.m.
Video from the crash site showed a large amount of smoke emanating from the burning military aircraft, which appeared to be completely destroyed.
Col. James Hayes, deputy commander of the 412th Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base, said during a news media briefing Monday afternoon that the aircraft was doing a local test sortie to support a radar modernization program when it crashed immediately after becoming airborne.
“Our team of first responders snapped into action, and immediately cordoned off the area and took the appropriate action to start putting out the flames,” Hayes told reporters.
Edwards Air Force Base officials set up centers for emergency operations and wing operations to coordinate and monitor the response and recovery crews, Hayes said.
“After reviewing the footage of the crash, it was deemed that this was an unrecoverable crash and unsurvivable,” Hayes said. “At that point, we went into the notification process.”
Chief Master Sgt. Joshua T. Skarloken said officials were in the process of notifying the crash victims’ families. Military personnel, government civilians and government contractors were among the people on the aircraft.
One of the people who died in the crash was identified Tuesday as Jeromy Smith, 32, a civilian flight test engineer. He was a husband and father of two young children.
According to a GoFundMe page created to support Smith’s wife Lauren, one of the couple’s two boys is just 4 months old, and their other son is 2 and a half years old.
“Our entire family is devastated by this great loss. My brother-in-law was an incredible husband and an amazing father to their boys,” Lindsey Smith wrote on the GoFundMe page, which as of Wednesday morning had raised over $46,000 of a $50,000 goal.
The couple resided in Bakersfield.
A separate GoFundMe page identified another of the victims as Lt. Col. Miles Middleton, 42, a test pilot. He was also married with two children.
“As a family friend, I’ve witnessed firsthand the strength and resilience Pam has shown, but the road ahead is filled with uncertainty and challenges,” Melissa Lynch wrote on the page. “With Miles gone, Pam is now responsible for supporting her family on her own.”
As of Wednesday morning people contributed more than $116,500 of the fundraiser’s $140,000 goal.
The B-52 Stratofortress has been a key regular component of the Air Force’s fleet of bombers since starting service in 1955. The long-range aircraft can carrying as much as 70,000 pounds of weapons and generally has a crew of five.
The last crash at the base occurred in 1992, when two crew members were died.
According to the U.S. Air Force, the 412th Test Wing does all flight and ground testing of aircraft, weapons systems, software and components along with modeling and simulation work. The unit has a maintenance group of over 2,000 people and an operations group of 3,000.
The test wing maintains and flies an average of 90 aircrafts with upwards of 30 aircraft designs and performs over 7,400 missions including more than 1,900 test missions each year, officials said.
“Risk is an accepted component of flight testing, but because of Edwards’ benchmark flight test safety processes, the center maintains a stellar safety record,” according to the 412th’s webpage on the Edwards Air Force Base website. “The AFTC’s mission focuses on Developmental Test and Evaluation which is the process used to identify risks that need to be reduced or eliminated before fielding new systems.”
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose 5th District includes the Antelope Valley and communities near Edwards Air Force Base, asked Board of Supervisors Chair Hilda Solis to hold a moment of silence at the board meeting Tuesday to pay respects to the crash victims.
“The loss of life in this tragic crash is heartbreaking,” Barger said in a statement.
“I am deeply grateful to the men and women who serve our nation and support critical military operations, and mourn alongside the Edwards Air Force Base community during this difficult time,” she added.
