B_1_Lancer

I remember the “Taupe 52” crash very well.

The crash woke me up that morning, as I was in the midst of a job search from my parents’ home in La Junta, where I had grown up.

The sound was like that of a sonic boom (which wasn’t all that uncommon during the decades that Detachment 1 of the First Combat Evaluation Group operated a radar range for pilot and missions specialist training there).

However, there was no aircraft noise following the sound—only silence. I thought that was peculiar, but I shrugged it off as my imagination getting away from me until hearing on the noon TV news what had actually occurred.

The disabled aircraft was within sight of an outdoor physical education class at the local high school until seconds before impact, and the crash rattled the rafters at Otero Junior College.

An aerial photograph of the long, narrow, charred strip where the crash occurred was taken before the area could be secured by military personnel, and the photo appeared on the front page of the next morning’s edition of the Pueblo Chieftain newspaper.

As I remember, there was only one identifiable piece of the aircraft (part of an engine mount) following the crash.

When I began my career as a civilian employee of the Air Force the next August, “bird strike modification” was one of the high-profile issues of the day at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center (at Tinker Air Force Base), which, according to Wikipedia, “is the worldwide manager for a wide range of large aircraft, engines, missiles, software and avionics and accessories components”.

Russell G. Sharp
in email 24th June 2009

Date	Air Force	A'cft	Unit / Serial	based	crashed	crew	photo	seat
29th August 1984	USAF	Rockwell B-1A/B	74-0159 second prototype	Air Force Flight Test Center AFFTC Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.	Testing the aircraft's performance with only two engines. Control lost during an aft centre of gravity test. Crashed 22 miles north east of Edwards AFB in the desert east of Boron	photo USAF

						Rockwell test pilot and flight commander Tommie Douglas "Doug" Benefield killed	pilot Richard V. Reynolds ejected in capsule severe injuries	Flight test engineer Capt. Otto J. Waniczek ejected in capsule severe injuries
						Escape pod parachutes didn't deploy fully and the module impacted in a right nose low attitude

"From the files - 1984"	". . . A spokesman at Edwards Air Force Base in California, headquarters for the B-1 testing program, said today that two survivors of the crash, and were in fair condition with chest and back injuries. A third member of the crew, Benefield, was killed in the accident. . . ." RIGHT: Patch commemorating Doug Benefield who was killed in the August 1994 accident

29th September 1987	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	84-0052 "Taupe 52"	96^th Bomb Wing, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas	Bird Strike [North America white pelican or Swainson's hawks] through wing near Pueblo Colorado during training flight at approximately 600 feet ruptured fuel lines. Fuel ignited and aircraft exploded	Maj. James T. Acklin pilot [instructor pilot] killed on impact		Weber ACES II
							It is thought that the pilot remained in his seat to give the two crew on the jump seats time to make a manual parachute bail. Other reports have suggested a seat problem.
						Capt. Lawrence H. Haskell pilot [student aircraft commander] ejected safely		Weber ACES II
						Maj. William H. Price navigator [instructor in offensive systems] ejected safely		Weber ACES II
						Capt. Joseph S. Butler [student defensive officer] ejected safely		Weber ACES II
						First Lieut. Ricky M. Bean [student pilot] killed on impact		jump seat
						Maj, Wayne D. Whitlock [instructor in defensive systems] killed on impact		jump seat
						The two crew who were killed in the aircraft were instructors and did not have ejection seats. In the event of an emergency they were expected to make conventional parachute bail-outs
	Exact crew positions not determined - clarification appreciated
FEEDBACK	Hi, I was maintenance on the B1B in Dyess from 1985-1989. Just a note...Ricky M Bean was a Capt. not a 1st lieutenant at the time of the Sept 1987 crash in Col. I also noticed you mention "normal" seats for the forward and rear observers in the middle positions. These were technically jump seats (a fold down seat, not very comfortable)and they did not have ejection or parachute capabilities. The riders in these seats knew they had to manually climb out once the other seats blew or if they could get the entry hatch open in time. There is no second row, just a forward and rear compartment. in email 19th November 2008 [site amended 20th November 2008]
	I remember the “Taupe 52” crash very well. The crash woke me up that morning, as I was in the midst of a job search from my parents’ home in La Junta, where I had grown up. The sound was like that of a sonic boom (which wasn’t all that uncommon during the decades that Detachment 1 of the First Combat Evaluation Group operated a radar range for pilot and missions specialist training there). However, there was no aircraft noise following the sound—only silence. I thought that was peculiar, but I shrugged it off as my imagination getting away from me until hearing on the noon TV news what had actually occurred. The disabled aircraft was within sight of an outdoor physical education class at the local high school until seconds before impact, and the crash rattled the rafters at Otero Junior College. An aerial photograph of the long, narrow, charred strip where the crash occurred was taken before the area could be secured by military personnel, and the photo appeared on the front page of the next morning’s edition of the Pueblo Chieftain newspaper. As I remember, there was only one identifiable piece of the aircraft (part of an engine mount) following the crash. When I began my career as a civilian employee of the Air Force the next August, “bird strike modification” was one of the high-profile issues of the day at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center (at Tinker Air Force Base), which, according to Wikipedia, “is the worldwide manager for a wide range of large aircraft, engines, missiles, software and avionics and accessories components”. Russell G. Sharp in email 24th June 2009
Tuesday 9th November 1988	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	85-0063	96^th Bomb Wing, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas	Crashed near Abilene, Texas. Fire in left wing caused engine failure during practising "touch-and-go" landings			Weber ACES II
						Pilot ejected safely	Co-pilot ejected safely	Weber ACES II
								Weber ACES II [left seat rear]
						Defensive Systems Officer (DSO) ejected safely	Offensive Systems Officer (OSO) ejected safely	Weber ACES II [right seat rear]
						Three crew ejected on pilot's command - he ejected after steering aircrfat away from residential area
	The Strategic Air Command ordered the fleet grounded for a mandatory, one-time inspection of all electric, fuel and hydraulic fluid lines.
18th November 1988 also seen as 17th November	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	85-0076	Ellsworth AFB, SD	struck a high voltage and utility poles on approach to Runway 31 and crashed during landing in bad weather at Ellsworth AFB, S.D			Weber ACES II
						pilot, Maj. Thomas C. Skillman ejected safely	co-pilot, Capt. Mick R. Gunthals ejected safely	Weber ACES II
								Weber ACES II [left seat rear]
						defensive systems officer Maj. Dean C. Spraggins ejected, suffered a back injury Taken to a hospital at Lackland Air Force Base near San Antonio, Tex	offensive systems officer, Capt. Grover M. Gossett ejected safely	Weber ACES II [right seat rear]
	An Air Force investigation concluded that the pilot and co-pilot lost track of altitude because of weather conditions.
Monday 27th March 1989 check date {confirm ??]	USAF	B-1B Bomber		Dyess Air Force Base, Abilene, Texas,	Movable wing on aircraft swung too far forward and punctured a fuel tank
Monday 27th March 1989 check date {confirm ??]	USAF inspected the most heavily used of its grounded B-1 bombers to determine if a mishap that caused a fuel leak in one plane was an isolated breakdown or a problem with the entire fleet
Tuesday 17th March 1992	Fourteen B-1B bombers grounded because of tiny cracks in their landing gears.
22nd May 1992	USAF	B-1B Bomber		28th Bomb Wing Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D	Damaged
30th November 1992	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	86-0106	96^th Bomb Wing, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas	crashed into mountainous terrain in the Sierra Vieja mountains near Van Horn, Texas during low-altitude, night-time training flight The Air Force attributed the crash to pilot error
						killed on impact	killed on impact

						killed on impact	killed on impact
20th June 1994	USAF	B-1B Bomber	84-0057 DY	7th BW Dyess AFB, Texas	Damaged
19th September 1997 14:25	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	85-0078 "Fury 02"	37th Bomb Squadron 28th Bomb Wing Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D	Crashed in to the ground near Alzada, southeast Montana during training mission practicing "low level defensive countermeasures" and simulated bombing Air Force Link	Capt. Gary Everett Col. Anthony Beat Maj. Kirk Cakerice Maj. Clay Culver CREW Positions not determined all killed on impact



18th February 1998	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	84‑0057 DY "Hellion"	7th BW Dyess AFB, Texas	Three engines shut down during refueling and low-level training mission. Crashed 5 miles north-west of Marion, KY, USA			Weber ACES II
						Lt. Col. Daniel Charchian [instructor pilot] ejected safely	Capt. Jeffrey Sabella [co-pilot] ejected safely	Weber ACES II
								Weber ACES II
						Capt. Kevin Schields [instructor weapons officer] ejected safely	1st Lt. Bert Winslow [weapons system officer] ejected safely	Weber ACES II
22nd October 1998	USAF	B-1B Bomber	??-???? DY	7th BW Dyess AFB, Texas	Damaged
22nd July 1999	USAF	B-1B Bomber	86-0115	127th BS	Damaged
22nd October 2000	USAF	B-1B Bomber	86-0094 EL	37th Bomb Squadron	Damaged
12th December 2001	USAF	B‑1B Lancer	86‑0114 EL "Live Free Or Die"	aircraft from 28th Bomb Wing, Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D	crashed while flying from Diego Garcia, to Afghanistan. Indian Ocean, 30 M N of Diego Garcia			Weber ACES II
						pilot, Capt. William Steele ejected safely at about 15,000 feet and rescued, slight cuts and bruises	ejected safely at about 15,000 feet and rescued, slight cuts and bruises	Weber ACES II
								Weber ACES II
						ejected safely at about 15,000 feet and rescued, slight cuts and bruises	ejected safely at about 15,000 feet and rescued, slight cuts and bruises	Weber ACES II


?????	?????	?????	?????

27th February 2004	USAF	B-1B Bomber	86-0139	34th BS	Damaged
23rd November 2004	USAF	B-1B Bomber	85-0083 EL	37th Bomb Squadron
13th December 2004	USAF	B-1B Bomber		28th Bomb Wing Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D
January 2005 [exact date needed]	USAF	B-1B Lancer		Ellsworth	nose-gear collapsed, after it had landed and was taxiing at an undisclosed location in the Middle East
January 2005 [exact date needed]	The B-1B Lancer fleet remained grounded for six days.
May 2005 [exact date needed]	USAF	B-1B Lancer		Diego Garcia	Aircrew forgot to lower the jet’s landing gear. Aircraft skidded down the runway for several thousand feet
15th September 2005	USAF	B-1B Lancer	85-0066 EL	37th Bomb Squadron Ellsworth	caught fire after landing because leaking hydraulic fluid came in contact with hot brakes at Andersen AFB
	photo source
	B-1B Lancer which caught fire on Andersen September 2005 had its wing, nacelle and landing gear parts removed for repair. The aircraft will then be returned to fully mission capable status and ready for combat in summer of 2008
8th May 2006 22:00	USAF	B-1B Lancer	86132 "Oh! Hard Luck"	7th BW Dyess AFB, Texas 28th BS based at Dyess AFB, Texas	Made a wheels-up belly landing on runway 31 at Diego Garcia, skidding 7,500 feet down the runway. Caught fire but flames extinguished	All four crew egressed through hatches		No ejections
26th August 2007	USAF	B-1B Lancer	86-0133 DY	9th BS Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan	An engine caught fire. Emergency landing at Air Base
	The aircraft was initially repaired at the base by a maintenance team from 654th Combat Logistics Support Squadron and in early October flown on three engines to RAF Fairford, where a second round of repairs. Link
Friday 5th March 2008 21:40 [confirm time??]	USAF	B-1B Lancer		Andersen Air Force Base, Guam	Crew reported a hydraulic leak. Emergency landing in transit from Singapore to Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. Rolled along runway and collided with emergency vehicles on the taxiway	All crew had already egressed normally.		No ejections
Thursday 20th March 2008	USAF	B-1B Bomber			Made a forced landing at Ellsworth Air Force Base following a reported in-flight emergency. Several small spot grass fires that were apparently caused by the bomber were quickly put out	FURTHER DETAILS APPRECIATED
Friday 4th April 2008	USAF	B-1B Bomber			Caught fire at the end of a runway and some of its munitions exploded after landing at al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar	all four crew members safely evacuated	FURTHER DETAILS APPRECIATED