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Doha: The US Air Force said investigations are under way to ascertain why an Air Force B-1 Bomber caught fire after landing at the Al Udeid Airbase on Friday night.
There were no casualties in the incident that occurred around 9pm while the B-1 was taxiing at the runaway, an official statement said on Saturday.
"A US Air Force B-1, while taxiing after landing at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, was involved in a ground incident and caught fire at 2110 local, on April 4," said the report issued by the US Air Forces Central Public Affairs Office, at the Combined Air and Space Operations Centre for Southwest Asia.
"The crew evacuated the aircraft and is safe. The fire was contained. A board of inquiry has been appointed and will investigate the incident."
Contacted by Gulf News, officials at the Doha-based US Central Command would not add further details to the statement.
Local reports said the explosion at the base, which is located 35km out of Doha, was heard in some parts of the city's outskirts.
The B-1 is a long range bomber carrying a host of satellite and laser-guided bombs. Often used in intercontinental missions, the B-1 is widely used by the US military to bomb targets over Iraq and Afghanistan. According to sources the US airbase in Qatar hosts at least six B-1 Bombers.
The Al Udeid base is the headquarters of the American Air Force operations in the Middle East and is the largest forward US air force base out of Tampa, Florida.
The base, which is currently under expansion, hosts more than 3,000 US troops, and tens of combat and support aircraft.
Following the expansion work, the estimated capacity will eventually reach up to 14,000 troops and more than 150 combat aircraft.
During the last Gulf war, the base served as the launch-pad for major air force operations in Iraq. According to sources, the base also hosts F15, F16, KC10, and C17.
In October, a US Patriot missile was accidentally launched from a military base in Qatar without causing any casualties. Debris of the missile fell in the farm of Qatar's Army Chief of Staff without causing any damage.
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