The Air Force Just Lost One of Its Huge B-1 Bombers in an Accident (2024)

Something went wrong for the flight crew on a B-1B Lancer bomber of the 28^th Bomb Wing on Thursday. The flying conditions were undeniably inclement: reportedly dense, freezing fog.

Whatever it was that went wrong, it caused the routine training mission to end with a large supersonic strategic bomber crashed on the runway of Ellsworth Air Force base in South Datkota, resulting in an “explosion and active fire” (per an overheard ground controller) and a brilliant flash that could be seen a fair distance away.

Fortunately, the bomber’s crew of four ejected successfully. Three were subsequently treated at base for minor injuries, while a fourth was hospitalized (but in safe condition) due allegedly to a back injury—a common occurrence when ejecting.

Air traffic at Ellsworth was subsequently suspended, and maintenance personnel were reportedly summoned for a commander’s call.

The first alleged photo of this still mysterious incident emerged Friday afternoon on a Facebook page commonly used as an Air Force rumor mill. It appears to show the wrecked aircraft belly-down on the snowed-over grass next to, but not on, the runway at Ellsworth. Some allege that the photo comes from a tower-mounted live feed at the base. Popular Mechanics cannot confirm the veracity of the photo at this time, however.

Another post at the same page provides additional context:

“Ellsworth AFB B-1, Aircraft 85-0085, crashed on the runway during landing. 4 ejected, one in the ER with back issues. They are all okay. Believed to be due to icy and foggy conditions. My buddy from the flightline told me that they tried to keep them from flying this morning. It is VERY foggy out right now. Which is instantly freezing to the ground.”

The Air Force has just 45 B-1B bombers left of the 100 built in the 1980s. It recently retired 17 B-1Bs, of which four were required to be stored in good quality condition to make back any casualties. It’s likely one of these aircraft will be tapped to replace the one that crashed.

The B-1B fleet has had a rough few years. A 7^th Bomb Wing Lancer was laid up in Norway for weeks after an engine fire allegedly caused by accident ingestion of a computer tablet. Another B-1B caught dramatically on fire on the ground in April 20, 2022.

ACES II Ejection Seat to the Rescue

The B-1B uses a lightly customized variant of the Collins Aerospace ACES II ejection seat system, which either automatically fires off the crew (after popping off canopy panels in rapid succession over the course of 2 seconds to reduce odds of collision), or allows the individual crew to manually pull a handle on the right side of their seat to trigger an ejection.

Each 127-pound aluminum alloy seat is designed to account for the weight of the seated crew member and adjust thrust from the CKU-5/A rocket catapult accordingly. At low speed and altitude conditions, the parachute would pop out in less than two seconds, allowing the crew to safely eject even at zero altitude, zero speed conditions—ie. while on the ground.

Given that the B-1 in the alleged photo appears to have crash landed, it’s technically possible that the crew ejected after impact. However, it seems more likely that they ejected during the final approaching upon realizing they were unlikely to execute a safe landing.

The fate of the last Lancers

After the cancellation of a more ambitious B-1A bomber in the 1970s, the less expensive B-1B was procured in the 1980s to penetrate Soviet airspace at low altitude and deliver nuclear strikes. Its swing wings could tuck in to reduce drag for low-supersonic flight, or extend wide for maximal lift while going low and slow. Its limited stealth characteristics gave the big bomber a radar cross-section in the ballpark of a much smaller F-16 fighter.

After the Soviet threat evaporated, the BONE’s nuclear capability was eventually stripped and it was used instead as a high-altitude bomber for blasting the likes of the Taliban, Iraqi insurgents, and ISIS over the course of very long missions. This allowed them to provide extended-duration on-call air support for troops below.

Having flown over 12,000 combat missions, mostly in the ‘War on Terror’ era, the remaining B-1Bs long ago surpassed their services lives. Now, they exhibit very high maintenance requirements—greater than those of the Air Force’s older and slower B-52 bombers, which today are used in a similar way to the B-1s. For this reason, the Air Force is planning to retire the B-1s in favor of keeping the B-52s active for decades longer.

Low-altitude flights—which Air Force B-1B crews train for but don’t actually perform operationally—tended to particularly stress the airframes and were even effectively banned by the service to keep the airplanes in as flyable condition as possible.

While the Air Force plans to retire all its Lancers in the 2030s, they still play an important role as long-range, long-endurance weapons carriers for now. They will likely continue to do so at least until they are replaced by new B-21 stealth bombers.

Despite its low serviceability rates, the B-1B’s ability to carry large payloads (up to 25 tons on its wings, or 37.5 tons in its three internal bays) over long distances would leave it much in demand in the event of a major conflict with Russia or (especially) China. Lancers in particular would be tapped to launch long-range AGIM-158C LRASM anti-ship missiles and possibly lug hypersonic weapons.

However, the Air Force is not likely to use the Lancer for its original intended low-altitude penetrating strike role due to low odds of survival operating within range of modern air defenses. That said, the B-1’s greater stealth and speed may allow it to approach a bit closer to key targets than a B-52 could, allowing faster reactivity versus moving or time-sensitive targets.