Overview
- Russia’s Tu-22M3 crashed during a routine training approach in Irkutsk on Monday, June 15, and the defence ministry said the unarmed crew ejected and survived with no reported ground damage.
- A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress crashed almost immediately after takeoff from Edwards Air Force Base during a test flight on the same day, and base officials said all eight people on board were killed.
- U.S. investigators cited video showing the B-52 engulfed in flames and have opened a formal probe that officials say could take up to six months to determine the cause.
- The B-52 was involved in a radar modernization program and carried a mixed crew of service members, government civilians and contractors, and Boeing confirmed two of its employees were among the dead.
- Both aircraft are long-serving strategic bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons, and the near-simultaneous accidents are likely to prompt reviews of maintenance, training and safety procedures for aging bomber fleets.