 A B-47E Stratojet similar to the incident aircraft. | |
| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 10 March 1956 |
| Site | Mediterranean sea |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 3 |
| Aircraft type | Boeing B-47E Stratojet |
| Operator | United States Air Force |
| Registration | 52-534 |
| Flight origin | MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, United States |
| Destination | Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco |
The 1956 B-47 disappearance occurred on 10 March 1956 over the Mediterranean Sea.
Flight[]
A Boeing B-47 Stratojet took off from MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, in the United States for a non-stop flight to Ben Guerir Air Base, Morocco[1] and completed the first aerial refueling without incident.
After descending through solid cloud to begin the second refueling, at 14,000 ft (4,267 m), B-47E serial number 52-534,[1] failed to make contact with its tanker.[2]
The unarmed aircraft was carrying two capsules of nuclear weapons material in carrying cases; a nuclear detonation was not possible.[3]
Aftermath[]
Despite an extensive search, no debris were ever found, and the crash site has never been located.[4] The crew has been declared dead.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Aircraft Serial Number Search
- ↑ "Check-Six.com – Broken Arrow B-47". Archived from the original on 4 May 2009. http://www.webcitation.org/5gWo2ifFh. Retrieved 11 March 2009.
- ↑ DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE – NARRATIVE SUMMARIES OF ACCIDENTS INVOLVING U.S. NUCLEAR WEAPONS 1950–1980
- ↑ Aerospaceweb.org – Broken Arrow Nuclear Weapon Accidents
The original article can be found at 1956 B-47 disappearance and the edit history here.