US Air Force/Master Sgt. Ted Daigle On May 18, 2016, a B-52H bomber was forced to abort its takeoff before bursting into flames. An Air Force investigation found the incident was caused by birds, and it wasn't the first time. Let's face it, seagulls are pretty damn annoying in the best of times. Now, we have an even better reason to dislike "sky rats." On May 18, 2016, a B-52H Stratofortress with the 5th Bomb Wing was forced to abort its takeoff run. According to a report by NBCNews.com, the plane later burst into flames and was a total loss. The reason behind the destroyed plane was finally uncovered by an Air Force investigation.