On 24 January 1963 a United States Air Force Boeing B-52C Stratofortress with nine crew members on board lost its vertical stabilizer due to buffeting stresses during turbulence at low altitude and cr
Memorial and wreckage of B-52 on Elephant Mountain
A Boeing B-52 Stratofortress similar to the aircraft involved
B-52H (61-023), configured at the time as a testbed to investigate structural failures, still flying after its vertical stabilizer sheared off in severe turbulence on 10 January 1964. The aircraft eventually landed safely and remained in service until 2008.
Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
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The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American nuclear-capable subsonic jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It
1963 Elephant Mountain B-52 crash
…On 24 January 1963 a United States Air Force Boeing B-52C Stratofortress with nine crew members on board lost its vertical stabilizer due to buffeting stresses during turbulence at low altitude and crashed on Elephant Mountain…
A B-52H from Barksdale AFB flying over Texas
XB-52 prototype on flight line (X-4 in foreground; B-36 behind). Note original tandem-seat "bubble" style canopy, similar to Boeing's earlier B-47 Stratojet.
Side view of YB-52 bomber, still fitted with a tandem cockpit, in common with other jet bombers in US service, such as the B-45 Tornado, B-47 Stratojet and Martin B-57 Canberra
B-52H Stratofortress undergoing maintenance to its rudder with its fin folded