Plane crash: Eight dead after B-52 bomber crashed after take off from US air force base in Mojave Desert, California

A B-52 bomber crashed in the US desert on Monday (June 15), killing eight people, it has been confirmed. The giant aircraft came down shortly after taking off from a US air force base in the Mojave Desert, in California.

An Edwards Air Force Base spokesperson said: "An Air Force B-52 Stratofortress carrying eight people on a routine test mission crashed today shortly after take-off at 11.20am. Initial indications are that the crash was not survivable. Emergency response personnel are on scene, and officials are working to account for all personnel."

James Hayes, deputy commander at Edwards, said those who died were military service people, government employees and civilian contractors, with next of kin being notified. "Right now our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those that lost their loved ones," he said.

Footage from the scene showed a destroyed B-52 near what appeared to be a runway, with emergency vehicles nearby. The military hasn’t said whether the bomber was armed.

A long-range bomber, the B-52 - full name Boeing B-52 Stratofortress - can be flown by a crew of five people. Introduced into service in 1955, it can carry both conventional and nuclear weapons, and has been used in conflicts ranging from the Vietnam war to Iraq and the recent bombing raids in the Middle East.

It is understood the plane which came down was being flown on a test mission as part of a program to modernize its radar from analogue to digital, US media reported. The US military is now investigating the cause of the crash, with a safety review set be submitted to an accident investigation board, Hayes added, which may take up to six months.

The airfield remained closed Monday afternoon and all inbound aircraft were being diverted away from the base, around 100 miles north of Los Angeles.