Two people were injured in an engine fire on a B-1B Lancer bomber at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas, on Thursday night. The aircraft was undergoing routine maintenance on the airbase apron when one of the General Electric F20-GE-101 engines on the left wing caught fire.
In a statement, the Air Base said that the flames were quickly contained by security teams. The injured were taken and transported to Hendrick Medical Center South, where they were later released.
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“We are so grateful that all Team Dyess involved were treated and are now safely at home. Thank you to our first responders who immediately arrived on scene and executed a real emergency response with the same level of professionalism and proficiency as they do in training,” said Colonel Joseph Kramer, commander of the 7th Bomb Wing.
A public affairs officer at Dyess Air Force Base told Air Force Magazine that the cause of the fire is being investigated. Damage to the aircraft is being assessed and it remains to be seen if the bomber will be recovered. Information about the injured individuals, including whether they were crew or mechanics, is not being released at this time.
Either way, the fire will keep the aircraft out of service for months at best. The B-1B involved in the fire is one of 45 aircraft left in the USAF Global Strike Command fleet, which concluded in September 2021. the early retirement of 17 bombers.
Just last year the entire B-1B fleet was grounded after an emergency caused by problems with the fuel pump filter compartment. Prior to that incident, one of the B-1s that took part in an operation in Norway earlier that same year suffered significant engine damage while in that country, the website notes. The War Zone.
This European deployment officially ended in March 2021. As a result of this accident, the leadership of the 7th Bomb Wing at Dyess decided to release a commander from the maintenance squadron “due to loss of confidence” in his ability to command.
Before the series of problems related to its engines, the B-1B fleet was also affected by problems related to its emergency exit system. The Air Force grounded the fleet twice in less than a year due to problems with the aircraft's ejection seats and later with the parachutes that stabilize the ejection seats.
