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| Guam crash for B-2 stealth bomber | Guam crash for B-2 stealth bomber |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| A US B-2 stealth bomber has crashed on the Pacific island of Guam, a US territory 6,000 km (3,700 miles) south-west of Hawaii. | A US B-2 stealth bomber has crashed on the Pacific island of Guam, a US territory 6,000 km (3,700 miles) south-west of Hawaii. |
| The jet crashed shortly after taking off from the island's Andersen Air Force Base, but both pilots ejected and survived, the US Air Force said. | The jet crashed shortly after taking off from the island's Andersen Air Force Base, but both pilots ejected and survived, the US Air Force said. |
| Black smoke could be seen billowing from the site, witnesses said. | Black smoke could be seen billowing from the site, witnesses said. |
| The US has 21 B-2 planes, each costing $1.2 bn and capable of deploying both conventional and nuclear weapons. | |
| Crowds gathered as emergency vehicles attended the scene after the crash, which happened around 1045 local time (0045 GMT). | |
| The US Air Force said both pilots had been medically evaluated and were "in good condition". | |
| No mission details | |
| A board of officers will investigate the causes of the incident, thought to have been the first peacetime crash for one of the USAF's prized stealth bombers. | |
| The Air Force did not provide details of the bomber's mission in Guam. | |
| All 21 B-2 stealth bombers are based at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, but several have been rotated through Guam since 2004. | |
| The craft have been used for missions in Afghanistan, Iraq and Serbia. | |
| Able to fly 6,000 nautical miles (11,100 kilometres) without refuelling, the B-2 can evade most radar signals making it difficult for defensive systems to detect, track and attack. |