Nellis searches for live bomb dropped by disabled plane

Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2000 | 11:10 a.m.

Nellis Air Force Base personnel were searching a rugged and remote area of public land 17 miles north of the base today for a 2,000-pound live bomb that one of its disabled airplanes jettisoned.

The missing bomb is one of two that was jettisoned from an A-10 aircraft after the plane experienced engine problems about 10 p.m. Monday, Nellis officials said, noting the other bomb was believed to have detonated upon impact on the ground.

Mike Estrada, spokesman for the base, said the plane made it safely back to the base on one engine.

"The pilot called the tower shortly after takeoff and reported engine problems, and it was determined he would not be able to make it back with the weight of the two 2,000-pound bombs," Estrada said.

"He jettisoned them in an area that was not populated. The supervisor in the tower saw only one flash of light, which leads us to believe that only one bomb detonated."

Estrada said the missing bomb is the type used during combat in Yugoslavia and has the power to level a warehouse-size building. The bomb that exploded left a crater and started a small fire in the lightly vegetated area, he said.

After sunrise today, Nellis explosive ordnance experts began combing that scorched area for the lost bomb. Estrada said the terrain was so rugged that a helicopter had to be used to get the search crews to the site.

Nellis officials said they were working closely with federal agencies, including the Fish and Wildlife Service, and Clark County, to locate the bomb that once found will be safely detonated.

Estrada said that it is not uncommon for pilots in training to carry live bombs, although in some cases cement-filled practice bombs are used. The pilot's night mission was to drop both of the bombs on targets on the Nellis range.

Estrada said there would have been no urgency had the bomb failed to detonate on the range because the range is cleared of such explosives and debris once a year.

"The urgency is that this is public lands in the national wildlife area, where someone might be able to get to," Estrada said. "We just can't take that chance."

Nellis officials have asked members of the public to stay away from the area.