A B-52 Stratofortress landed safely on Wednesday after an engine “dropped out” over an unpopulated area of North Dakota, Defense News reports, holy shit.
According to Air Force officials, none of the five personnel aboard the aircraft were injured. As each B-52 is powered by eight turbojets paired in four pods, the bomber still carried seven engines at the time, but, like, still.
Last manufactured in the 1960s, America’s B-52s have received periodic upgrades over the years, but no bomber has emerged as a serious replacement for the 76 Stratofortresses currently in service. In 2014, the Air Force began reviewing possible re-engining schemes for the B-52, which is expected to serve into the 2040s.
Military officials have opened an safety investigation into the cause of the incident, but say the bomber carried no weapons during the training mission. A helicopter was later dispatched to the scene to recover debris from the engine, which, again, fell off the goddamn plane in the middle of a goddamn flight.