B-52 on test flight plunged at a rate of nearly a mile a minute before deadly crash, data shows

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The B-52 involved in a deadly crash during a test flight at an Air Force base in California made a sharp right and then nearly completed a 180-degree turn before plunging to the ground at a rate of nearly a mile a minute, limited tracking data shows Tuesday.

All eight people aboard were killed in Monday’s fiery crash of the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, which was taking part in a routine mission as part of an overall program to keep the long-running aircraft flying for decades to come. It was not yet clear what caused the plane to crash immediately after takeoff, and officials at Edwards Air Force Base said it could take up to six months to complete the investigation.

The airfield remained closed Tuesday. Crews were making the crash site safe for search and recovery teams to enter, after fires flared up overnight, said Mike Paoli, a spokesperson for the 412 Test Wing at Edwards.

The flight tracking that was available Tuesday shows the bomber turning to the northeast right after taking off and nearly completing a 180 degree turn before crashing on another runway, according to AirNav Systems. The data that comes from a system called “multilateration” doesn’t show precise altitude and speed information, but it does show the plane fell to earth at a rate of descent of 5,056 feet (1,541 meters) per minute — nearly 10 times as fast as a plane normally descends when preparing to land.

The aircraft was supporting a “radar modernization program,” Col. James Hayes, the deputy commander for the 412 Test Wing, said Monday. In 2025, Boeing sent a B-52 to Edwards with a modernized radar system that is key to keeping the bomber in the air through at least 2050, nearly a century after it first entered service.

A test team planned to conduct ground and flight test activities on the aircraft throughout 2026 to feed a production decision, the Air Force said in a 2025 news release. The modern Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system replaced the aircraft’s antiquated radar. It was unclear if that was the same aircraft involved in Monday’s crash.

AESA replaced 1960s radar technology and offers improved navigation and targeting capabilities, according to a 2023 news release from Raytheon, which designed the new system for the Air Force’s entire B-52 fleet.

B-52 began flying in the 1950s

The B-52, a long-range bomber that entered service in 1955, is designed to carry both conventional and nuclear weapons. It has been used in conflicts involving the U.S. military from Vietnam to Iran.

Along with a new radar, the fleet of 76 B-52s are scheduled to receive additional upgrades, including new engines, crew compartments, conventional and nuclear communication systems, avionics and weapons. The military said the goal is to make the B-52 a complement to the Air Force’s newest strategic bomber, the B-21 Raider.

Aerial footage showed virtually nothing left of the aircraft that went down at the base in the Mojave Desert about 100 miles (161 km) northeast of Los Angeles. Officials determined no one could have survived after reviewing footage of the crash, Hayes said at a news conference.

Those on the B-52 included government contractors, Boeing employees and uniformed military.

Edwards is home to the 412th Test Wing, which conducts regular developmental testing of all Air Force aircraft, weapons systems, software and components before purchase by the service as well as throughout their lifespan. Test missions take place at Edwards daily, Hayes said.

The base is where Air Force test pilot Chuck Yeager reached a speed of Mach 1.05 and broke the sound barrier in 1947.

Investigators will focus on how quickly the crash came

Aviation safety expert J. Joseph said that often when a crash happens at very low altitude right after takeoff, a problem with the flight controls or engines is involved. But it is still too early to know what caused this tragedy, said Joseph, a retired Marine Corps colonel and airline pilot.

Even in a B-52 with eight engines, a malfunction can make the plane difficult to control if the pilot loses the outboard engines, and the forces pushing the plane get out of balance in a condition Joseph called asymmetric thrust.

And he said that when something goes wrong this close to the ground the pilot has very little chance to do anything.

“There’s a lot of options with altitude, a lot of options, with airspeed. And that is a very critical phase of flight right after takeoff,” Joseph said.

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Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press journalist Konstantin Toropin contributed from Washington, D.C.