Broken Arrow Crash Site - USAF B-36 44-92075, Feb 13, 1950

 Cold War 1947-1991, aircraft crash site

On February 13th, 1950 a US Air Force B-36 'Peacemaker' bomber crashed into Mount Kologet after suffering engine problems on training mission simulating a nuclear attack on the US Mainland.

The B-36 and her crew of 16 and one observer had taken off from Eielson AFB carrying a single unarmed Mark IV atomic bomb which contained a substantial quantity of natural uranium and 5000 pounds of conventional explosives. Roughly seven hours into the flight three of the bombers massive engines began flaming out and had to be shut down, and as power was increased on the remaining three engines they failed to provide the power needed to keep the plane aloft. Steadily losing altitude and unable to make any US Bases the B-36's Commanding Officer informed the Strategic Air Command of the situation, abandoned the mission and made for the Canadian Coast.

Shortly before passing over Princess Royal Island the crew jettisoned the Nuclear Bomb after arming the conventional portion of the weapon, and watched and recorded it's conventional detonation some 3000ft over the water. Shortly afterwards, the crew bailed out of the aircraft followed by the Captain after he set the B-36 on a looping course to keep it over open water.

Exhaustive rescue efforts by the Canadian Military in foul weather eventually recovered 12 of the 17 men alive, but 5 men were never seen again. USAF officials did not launch a recovery effort to find the lost B-36, believing that it and whatever remained of the Nuclear weapon had crashed into the Pacific and sank. It wasn’t until three years later that a search and rescue team came upon the enormous and nearly intact wreck of a B-36 at this location that the USAF sent out recovery teams to investigate, and after several failed attempts to reach the remote site the fate of B-36 44-92075 was finally confirmed in August 1954. To this date, it is unknown how the aircraft managed to crash some 200 miles and several thousand feet higher from where it was abandoned.

After removing any sensitive materials from the aircraft wreckage, US teams dynamited the plane and have left much of it onsite. Local souvenir hunters have picked over the wreck, and several parts and pieces are now visible in local homes, museums and pubs.

www.cowtown.net/proweb/brokenarrow2.htm
www.air-and-space.com/b-36%20wrecks.htm#44-92075