England Airforce Base, Rapides Parish Louisiana Submitted by Chere Lee Date: September 25, 2011 ************************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************** The Jennings Daily News Jennings Louisiana Thursday, January 22, 1959 Six Airmen Die in Flaming Tanker Crash at England Air Force Base Alexandria, La. (AP) - A four-engine Air Force refueling plane crashed and burned early today shortly after takeoff on a routine training mission. England Air Force Base confirmed all six crewmembers died in the flaming crash. The plane, a converted B50 bomber took off with six others on an early morning refueling mission with fighter planes. The England tower said the pilot radioed just after he took off that the plane was in trouble and he was returning to the field. The plane exploded as it landed, careened across the field before the fuselage came to rest on a Texas and Pacific Railroad track. England authorities said all six crewmembers - three officers and three enlisted men - were badly burned and identification would be difficult. The victim's names will not be released until relatives are contacted. The England control tower said the plane failed to gain altitude as it took off anf the pilot came through with his emergency radio message. The plane cut a 200-yard swath before it finally came to rest on the tracks, about a half-mile from a cluster of residences. England authorities said the plane carried a full load of jet fuel but declined to say how many gallons were aboard. There was no visible evidence of fire after the pilot radioed he was returning, the England tower said, but the big tanker burst into flames as it touched ground. The normal crew aboard the tanker, England said, was a pilot, co-pilot, navigator, engineer, and two refueling technicians. The railroad said the tracks would be cleared before the next Alexandria to Shreveport train was expected to pass.