Reports: No Injuries in Engine Incident That Forced Emergency Landing at Airport.

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer heavy bomber is reported to have made an emergency landing following an “engine failure” at Midland International Air and Space Port between Midland and Odessa, Texas, on May 1, 2018.

The aircraft shown on the ground in photos posted on social media is from the 7th Bomb Wing, either the 28th or 9th Bomb Squadron (most probably the first one based on the tail markings) at Dyess AFB near Abilene, Texas. Midland International Air and Space Port is approximately 150 miles from Dyess AFB where the aircraft likely originated.

No injuries were reported in the incident and all four of the crewmembers on board the B-1B Lancer were reported to have left the plane on the ground normally.

A story published on the KTXS12, local ABC affiliate website, said that officials at Dyess AFB told reporters the B-1B, “experienced an in-flight emergency”. Another local news station, KWES, quoted the airport manager as saying the aircraft experienced a “flame out”.

Reports indicate the aircraft was not carrying any munitions at the time of the incident. The bomber will remain at the Midland airport “until it can be safely returned to Dyess,” according to a new release.

The B-1B is a supersonic, four-engine, variable-geometry swept wing heavy strategic bomber that first flew in 1974. It is in operational use with the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command and has been used extensively in the Global War on Terror. The B-1B has demonstrated an excellent safety record for a large supersonic aircraft.

Top image: file photo of a U.S. Air Force B-1B

Ever wondered what it looks like to be in the cockpit of a B-1 “Bone” doing an aileron roll?

Low level flying, formation flying, night refueling, range activity and even a bit of aerobatics (yes, “Bones” can perform aileron rolls): this is all what you will find in the footage below produced by B-1 FTU Class 16-02 students “to share a glimpse into the life of upgrading Pilots and WSOs (Weapon System Officers)” and shared on Twitter by @B1B_Driver.

Air Force Strike Global Command FTUs provide follow-on training for pilots, WSOs and aircrew members in their assigned aircraft (B-52, B-1 or B-2).

Several “Bones” (in accordance with the nickname used by their aircrews) have deployed to Guam on Aug. 6, marking the first B-1 deployment there in a decade.

The aircraft, replaced the B-52s in supporting the U.S. Pacific Command’s (USPACOM) Continuous Bomber Presence mission.

Update: unfortunately the footage has been removed from Youtube. Still, here’s a gif of the aileron roll part.

 

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Salva

“Da Bone” taking off = awesome sight.

The following video is particularly interesting as it shows a type of departure rarely seen at airbases across the world: the so-called “airborne pickup.”

Military aircraft that don’t take-off in formation, usually depart in sequence, rejoining (if needed) during the climb. In an “airborne pickup” one of the aircraft takes off, makes a 180-degree turn to enter the downwind leg for the runway in use and then turns back again to rejoin with the second aircraft that, in the meanwhile, has just got airborne.

It’s a visual maneuver in which perfect timing is essential to achieve the expected outcome: if everything goes as planned, the first aircraft should be flying in formation with the other one as soon as the second aircraft has completed the departure and before it starts the next turn inbound the first waypoint.

There are no special requirements of configurations and it’s a fairly simple maneuver that requires the airborne plane to compensate for any differences in performance between the aircraft by adjusting the pattern and by calling the “brake release” to aircraft on the ground.

The following video appears to show the final part of the maneuver, with the B-1 Lancer (or “Bone”) already airborne eventually becoming number 1 of the formation departed from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas (as opposed to the airborne pickup where the airborne aircraft completes the maneuver as chase plane, trailing the aircraft just taken off).

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Head-on take off by a “Bone” deployed to Qatar to fight ISIS

B-1’s take offs are always impressive.

B-1’s take off at Al Udeid, west of Doha, in Qatar, where the U.S. Air Force has based its heavy bombers to fight ISIS in Iraq and Syria can become really breathtaking if you observe the head-on departure of a Lancer coming low over you: this is what you can (almost) experience by simply watching the following video.

Noise abatement and safety procedures stateside usually prevent such maneuvers to be performed at Dyess or Ellsworth Air Force Base.

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A B-1 launch is always an impressive sight.

The following footage shows B-1 Lancer bombers with the 34th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron launch from Al Udeid airbase, in Qatar, to pound ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria.

The “Bones” (as the B-1s are nicknamed within the pilots community), have taken part in the air strikes on IS positions since the beginning of the air campaign.

The heavy bombers have been involved in carpet bombings not seen since the 2003 war in Iraq: according to a recent story published by the AFP news agency, the B-1s had flown 18 percent of all the strike missions against the Islamic State and accounted for 43 percent of the total tonnage of munitions dropped in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan over the last 6-month period.

B-1s were frequently spotted over Kobane, where they spent several hours dropping bombs on the extremists who were on the verge of seizing the strategic town in the north of Syria.

According to the pilots of the 9th Bomb Squadron who took part in the missions over Kobane and have recently returned to the U.S. after their deployment in Qatar, it was not uncommon for the B-1s to “go Winchester” (a radio codeword which means that the aircraft has dropped all the weapons on board) during air strikes over the Syrian border town.

 

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