B-52 bomber crashes off Guam

[Mike Scott]

An Air Force B-52 bomber crashed off the coast of Guam today with six personnel on board, Coast Guard and Air Force officials said.
The bomber crashed about 25 miles northwest of Apra Harbor in Guam, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Luke Clayton.

Coast Guard officials received a call about 3 p.m. (Hawaii time) after a jet flew over the wreckage, Clayton said. Coast Guard crew members were helping the Guam fire department and the Navy look for the crew members.

Coast Guard rescuers found at least one man and took him aboard the Guam-based 110-foot Cutter Assateague. His condition was not available, Clayton said.

Philip Breeze, chief of public relations for the 15th Airlift Wing based at Hickam Air Force Base, said B-52s are stationed at Anderson Air Force Base in Guam.

Pacific Air Forces, based at Hickam, oversees Andersen Air Force Base.

The B-52, with its 185-foot wingspan and more than 160-foot length, is the country's first long-range, swept-wing heavy bomber, according to its maker, Boeing.

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