A U.S. B-1 bomber caught fire while landing at al-Udeid military base in Qatar but all crew members escaped safely, according to U.S. military sources speaking to western news sources and the al-Jazeera Web site.

The base is headquarters for all American air operations in the Middle East, the military said.

The Air Force said the bomber was taxiing after landing and "was involved in a ground incident" and caught fire. The fire was contained, but no other details were available. The incident was under investigation.

There are four crew members on the B-1 bombers. It is not known whether the bomber was a B-1 or a B-1B.

The first B-1 was developed in the 1970s as a replacement for the B-52. Four prototypes of this long-range, supersonic strategic bomber were developed and tested in the mid-1970s, but the program was canceled in 1977 before going into production, according to the Air Force.

Flight testing continued through 1981, however, and major changes included strengthening the aircraft to boost its payload by 74,000 pounds. It was fitted with better radar, but the changes combined meant lowering the aircraft's maximum speed.

The first production B-1 flew in October 1984. The first B-1B, the newest generation of the bomber, was delivered to Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, in June 1985.

The B-1B holds almost 50 world records for speed, payload, range, and time of climb in its class, according to the Air Force.

It was first used in combat in support of operations against Iraq during Operation Desert Fox in December 1998. Eight B-1s were deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. B-1s dropped nearly 40 percent of the total tonnage during the first six months of the war there.

Refresh this page for updates.