Victims ID'd in B-52 bomber crash that killed 8 at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base has released the names of the eight people killed in a B-52 Stratofortress bomber crash on Monday. The deceased include military personnel, Boeing employees and government civilians.
The deceased include weapons system officers Lt. Col. Gabriel Estrella, 40, and Maj. Alexander Davis, 34. Estrella was part of the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center at Edwards. 419th Test Squadron pilots Maj. Robert Dee, 40, and Maj. Brad Hovey, 35, were also among the dead.
The others killed were Jeremy Smith, 32, a flight test engineer from the 419th Flight Test Squadron; Christopher Rischar, 41, a contractor and flight test engineer; retired Lt. Col. Miles Middleton, 50, a Boeing pilot; and Col. Gregory Watson, 53, a weapons officer for Boeing and Air Force reservist assigned to the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth, Texas.
"It is with profound sorrow and a heavy heart that I can now share the names of the eight extraordinary Americans we lost during Monday's B-52 crash," Col. Thomas Tauer, 412th Test Wing commander, said in a news release identifying the deceased. "They were dedicated professionals, beloved family members and irreplaceable teammates. ... These Airmen were more than coworkers. They were friends, mentors, teammates and valued members of our Edwards and Air Force family."
The group was acting as a Combined Test Force, or CTF, which the airfield described as a unique construct where active-duty airmen work with military contractors and government civilians to complete specific projects.
As standard practice, the military makes public identifications 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.
The crew was embarking on a test mission for the Air Force's Radar Modernization Program when the plane took off around 11:20 a.m. local time, CBS News previously reported. The plane crashed on the runway shortly after taking off and burst into flames.
Aerial footage taken shortly after the crash showed a large burn mark and a huge plume of smoke, which could be seen for miles. Col. James Hayes, the deputy commander for the 412th Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base, described the crash as "unsurvivable," despite immediate efforts from first responders.
The airfield will remain closed until at least Thursday, the base previously said. Flight test operations are expected to resume early next week.
The Radar Modernization Program is meant to upgrade B-52 bombers so the planes can continue flying into the 2050s. The aircraft have "tremendous" payload capacity and range, according to Doug Birkey, the executive director of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. The planes are capable of carrying nuclear weapons. Some B-52s were recently deployed during the Iran war.
But the age of the B-52s poses a risk, Birkey said. They are among the oldest planes in the Air Force's fleet, with those still in service today having been built in the early 1960s. The U.S. military is paying nearly $50 billion to upgrade those planes, with the hopes of keeping them flying until the 2050s.
"When you are dealing with aircraft of this age and when you are pressing for the high-performance type scenarios, we're asking folks to take a lot of risk," Birkey told CBS News on Tuesday. "And clearly, eight people paid with their lives."
The U.S. Air Force's Accident Investigation Board will examine the incident, the base said. The board's investigation process can take up to six months to form initial conclusions on the cause of the crash.
Supporting families who lost loved ones and other team members remains the base's primary objective, it said. The test wing has stood up an Emergency Family Assistance Center to provide support, like mental health services, childcare assistance, legal counsel, and chaplain support for anyone at Edwards Air Force Base, according to the Air Force.
Air Force Global Strike Command, which oversees the bomber program, encouraged members of the command to look after each other in an X post on Wednesday.
"Please take the time to check in on your wingmen. Grief affects us all differently, and there is absolute strength in asking for help when you need it," the post from the commander and command chief of AFGSC said.
The U.S. Air Force does much of its aerospace testing at Edwards. The facility is located about 100 miles north of Los Angeles.
