4 JAN, 2017, MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. —   A Boeing B-52H Stratofortress (61-0001) of the 23rd Bomb Squadron, 5th Bomb Wing based at Minot AFB, North Dakota suffered an inflight mishap when the number three engine dropped off during a training flight on Wednesday, the Air Force has confirmed following questions from Defense News.

Because the B-52 runs on eight Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-3/103 turbofan engines, pilots were able to land the aircraft safely without any injury to the five personnel on board. The Air Force has since dispatched a UH-1N Huey helicopter to recover engine debris, which was found located in an unpopulated area about 25 nautical miles northeast of Minot Air Force Base, an Air Force spokesman said in a statement.

“There were no weapons onboard the B-52 and was conducting a routine training mission,”

Col. Matthew Brooks, commander of the 5th Bomb Wing, part of Air Force Global Strike Command’s Eighth Air Force, created a safety investigation board to determine what caused the mishap .

On 16 JUL, 2018, the Air Force issued it’s report of the mishap. The cause of the mishap was due to the first stage fan disk of the Pratt & Whitney TF33 engine had failed in mid-air and caused the Number Three engine to break off the wing of the bomber.

MISHAP REPORT