A B-1 Lancer crew is safe on the ground tonight, following ejection from their bomber at Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota.
Details are few, Air Force officials confirmed the crash occurred shortly before 6:00pm local. The bomber was attempting to land on the base after conducting a training mission.
“A board of officers will investigate the accident,” noted the base on social media. “Additional details will be provided as they become available. For questions regarding this incident, contact the 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs Office at (605) 385-5056, or by e-mail at 28bw.public.affairs@us.af.mil.”
We’ll update as details come out.
Not the first B-1 to crash from Ellsworth
Two squadrons of B-1s operate out of Ellsworth. A number of their giant bombers, affectionately known as the BONE, have crashed since the 1980s, or had serious incident. One crash in 1988 also saw that crew eject safely while landing.
Other Ellsworth BONE crews have not been as lucky. One crew crashed in 1997 over Montana. All were lost.
In both instances, pilot error was to blame. Another incident occurred over Montana again in 2013, but the crew ejected safely. Another Ellsworth B-1 was lost in 2001 after taking off from the Indian Ocean for a combat mission in Afghanistan. They too ejected safely and were rescued by the U.S. Navy.
An Ellsworth BONE had a mid-air collision with a refueling tanker in the early 90s (both planes made it back to base). Another burst into flames in Guam in 2005 while taxiing. In both instances the crew were ok.
Sun is setting on the B-1
The sun is setting on the B-1 Lancer. The USAF is bringing online their next generation stealth bomber to replace it, the B-21 Raider, which you can read about here.
Northrop Grumman has been developing the new bomber now for years. Six aircraft are currently in various stages of production and testing, and flight testing is currently underway in Southern California. Development has been highly classified.
