B-2 Stealth Bomber Crashes in Guam

11:30 a.m. - Guam Fire Department Spokesman Angel Llagas said a 911 call at about 10:45 a.m. reported a explosion on Andersen Air Force Base, which Llagas said was later reported as a possible downed military aircraft.

1:45 p.m. - The U.S. Air Force has confirmed that a B-2 bomber crashed on Andersen air Force Base at about 10:45 a.m. today.

Two pilots from the 509th Bomb Wing were on board and ejected, according to a press release from Pacific Air Command public affairs at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii.

The Air Force, without identifying the pilots, said one was medically evaluated and released, and the other was in stable condition at Guam Naval Hospital.

A board of officers will investigate why the plane crashed since, according to the Government Accountability Office, each B-2 Spirit Bomber costs $1.2 billion to build.

All 21 stealth bombers are based at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, but the Air Force has been rotating several of them through Guam since 2004, along with B-1 and B-52 bombers in support of the USAF Pacific Command. The rotations are designed to boost the U.S. security presence in the Asia-Pacific region while other U.S. forces diverted to fight in the Middle East.

The accident occurred 11 days after a Navy plane crashed into the ocean about 20 miles northeast of Guam's Ritidian Point. Four aircrew members ejected from the EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare aircraft and were rescued by helicopter.

Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the US Air Force B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. The B-2 is a low-observable, strategic, long-range, heavy bomber capable of penetrating sophisticated and dense air-defence shields. It is capable of all-altitude attack missions up to 50,000ft, with a range of more than 6,000nm unrefuelled and over 10,000nm with one refuelling, giving it the ability to fly to any point in the world within hours.

Its distinctive profile comes from the unique 'flying wing' construction. The leading edges of the wings are angled at 33° and the trailing edge has a double-W shape. It is manufactured at the Northrop Grumman facilities in Pico Rivera and Palmdale in California.

21 B-2s have been delivered to Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, the first in December 1993. In the first three years of service, the operational B-2s achieved a sortie reliability rate of 90%. An assessment published by the USAF showed that two B-2s armed with precision weaponry can do the job of 75 conventional aircraft.

A new transportable hangar system has been developed which allows the B-2 to be deployed to forward locations overseas. The hangars are 126ft long, 250ft wide and 55ft high. The first of these hangars has been erected on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

Prior to this development, B-2s had to return to Whiteman AFB after missions, for maintenance of the aircraft's stealth features. The B-2 was thus deployed for the first time during Operation Iraqi Freedom in March / April 2003.

Watch the B-2 in action: U.S. Air Force video of B-2