Multiple witnesses spotted a huge plume of black smoke emanating from Edwards Air Force Base and shared it on social media on Monday. It was revealed shortly thereafter that a B-52 Stratofortress had crashed during takeoff at the base.
“What the —- happened at Edwards AFB?” an X user asked alongside photos showing a massive black cloud of smoke rising from the ground at the military base in Kern County, California.
“Was just looking at the fire cameras on the Watch Duty app and spotted that same thing…” another X user commented alongside a video.
Shortly after those images and others began circulating on social media, Edwards Air Force Base reported on Facebook that a B-52 Stratofortress crashed shortly after takeoff at about 11:20 a.m. local time.
🇺🇸 Video from Fox News at Edwards Air Force Base after the B-52 Stratofortress crash.
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 15, 2026
There's NOTHING left of the massive plane!
Writer: Oliverpic.twitter.com/OUAWq0CfIB https://t.co/Ih5CApUH1P
“Emergency crews immediately responded to the scene and the situation is ongoing,” the base wrote. “More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
Boeing manufactures the B-52 Stratofortress, an American nuclear-capable, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber that typically has a crew of five. The U.S. Air Force has been using it since 1955.
The Air Force Flight Test Center and the Air Force Materiel Command’s center of excellence for flight research and development are each located at Edwards Air Force Base. Additionally, the base houses NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, operates the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, and facilitates testing by the commercial aerospace sector in the United States.
Edwards AFB has shared another message on social media following the initial report. It reads: “Update – 12:48 PDT: The airfield has been closed, and all inbound aircraft are being diverted. All non-commercial visitor passes have been suspended until further notice to allow the installation to focus entirely on emergency response operations.”