USAF Report Blames Coupling Failure for $300m B-2 Crash

USAF report blames coupling failure for $300m B-2 crash

A single hydraulic component failure led to the December 2022 crash of a B-2A Spirit stealth bomber at Whiteman Air Force Base, causing more than $300 million in damage, according to a U.S. Air Force investigation released on 5 August 2025. The Accident Investigation Board (AIB) found “by a preponderance of evidence that the mishap was caused by a truck position sequence valve hydraulic CryoFit coupling failure.” The aircraft, tail number 90-004…

Hydraulic Failure Caused 2022 B-2 Crash at Whiteman Air Force Base, Report Finds

A faulty hydraulic system caused one of the Air Force’s most advanced stealth bombers to crash and burn at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, in 2022, destroying the $2 billion aircraft and cutting the B-2 fleet to 19.  Investigators said a failed valve in the landing gear system kept the bomber’s left gear from locking during touchdown, sending the 170-foot-wide “Spirit of Hawaii” skidding more than a mile down the runway on its wing before eru…