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1956 RAF Lakenheath B-47 crash

27 Jul 1956 · RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk, United Kingdom

307th Bombardment Wing, United States Air Force (USAF) Boeing B-47 Stratojet · Runway excursion and crash upon landing, subsequent fire damage to nuclear weapons

From RAF Lakenheath (LKZ) to RAF Lakenheath (LKZ)

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Event

Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
Accident
Event fatalities
4 · all aircraft and ground
Ground fatalities
Unknown
Occupants
4
Survivors
0
InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
Unknown
OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
Military

Boeing B-47 Stratojet

Aircraft type
Boeing B-47
Category
Airplane · from aircraft type
RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
Unknown
Onboard fatalities
4
Route
From RAF Lakenheath (LKZ)To RAF Lakenheath (LKZ)

Approximate · Estimated position: RAF Lakenheath, the airport the Wikipedia article names as the site. Where on or near it is not known.

From the Wikipedia article

RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, one of several air bases in the United Kingdom which was used by the United States Air Force to store nuclear weapons during the Cold War, was the site of accidents involving nuclear weapons, in 1956 and 1961.

Text from the Wikipedia article “RAF Lakenheath nuclear weapons accidents” (revision 1370377851, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article

Sources

Wikipedia article: RAF Lakenheath nuclear weapons accidents
Article
RAF Lakenheath nuclear weapons accidents
Revision
1370377851 · 2026-08-20 · retrieved 2026-09-18
Wikidata
Q104879862
Licence
Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
Record
Wikipedia article "RAF Lakenheath nuclear weapons accidents" (page 66058792, revision 1370377851)
Date
Wikipedia infobox: date
Place and country
Wikipedia infobox: site
Map position
airport the Wikipedia infobox site links (Wikidata code, OurAirports)
Aircraft, operator and route
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
Operation
operator named as an armed force or military unit in the infobox
Fatalities
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
Ground fatalities
not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
Summary
Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
  • Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.