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Report: B-2 caught fire before crashing

All B-2 Spirit flying operations have been temporarily suspended while investigators examine why a B-2 slammed into the runway Saturday at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, shortly after it took off, officials said.

A fire was reported shortly after take off by one of its pilots, an unnamed senior Air Combat Command official reportedly told Aviation Week. The B-2 then “rolled uncontrollably to the right” and crashed between the ramp and the taxiway at 10:45 a.m. Saturday in Guam time, the magazine reported.

Both pilots ejected safely Saturday, though one is currently hospitalized at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu and being treated for a spinal compression, said Tech. Sgt. Tom Czerwinski, a Pacific Air Force’s command spokesman.

The names of the two pilots have not yet been released, said 509th spokesman 1st Lt. Matt Miller.

The fleet of 20 remaining B-2s is not grounded, but Brig. Gen. Garrett Harencak, the 509th Bomb Wing commander, ordered the safety pause to allow the unit to review procedures, Miller said

“A safety pause is the most prudent thing to do after something like this,” he said.

The B-2 that crashed, named the Spirit of Kansas, had 5,100 flight hours and was one of four scheduled to return Saturday to Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., where the 509th and all B-2s are stationed. The four B-2s were deployed to Andersen on a four-month tour. Until the end of the pause, the other three B-2s will remain in Guam, Miller said. Six B-52s from the 96th Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., have arrived to replace them.

Despite the safety pause, Miller said the 509th could generate an aircraft if tasked with an immediate operational mission.

A board of officers is investigating what caused the first-ever B-2 bomber crash, said Capt. Sheila Johnston, a spokeswoman for Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force Base, Va.

The B-2 was first publicly displayed in 1988 and took its first flight a year later. The first bomber was delivered to Whiteman in 1993.