A spokesperson from Whiteman Air Force Base has confirmed to Stars & Stripes that a flipped switch plus multiple rare malfunctions forced a B-2 to make an emergency landing Oct. 23, 2018 in Colorado Springs.
Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
The four switches are part of the Airframe Mounted Accessory Drive and mounted on a panel next to the pilot’s knees. When activated, the electrical generator and hydraulics will be decoupled from the engine. When four switches are flipped at the same time, the crew has no choice but to eject.
The 509th Bomb Wing approached Knob Noster High School for a solution. The school’s Stealth Panthers robotics team printed a 3D plastic cover for the four switches in less than a week. The team has printed more than 30 covers, which costs $1.25 a piece, and are now installed in each operational B-2 at Whiteman and the simulator cockpits.