Flying Fortress lost

Keith Webb · #1 14-06-11, 11:25

Nobody injured but B-17 "Liberty Belle" was totally destroyed by fire after a forced landing due to an onboard fire which appears to have started outboard of one of the engines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcrQLsRfGkw

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/2...928/photos/AR/

Howard · #2 14-06-11, 11:57

Another piece of history gone.
However, I don't think we should keep these things locked up in hangars. They were meant to fly and therefore, worth the risk. My two bobs' worth.

Ganmain Tony · #3 14-06-11, 12:20

You never know....if they have deep pockets and a ton of motivation.

But thats probably not on the owners mind at the moment.....just a crushing sense of disbelief....

Richard Coutts-Smith · #4 14-06-11, 13:10

Spot on Howard. What a shame though.
Rich

Keith Webb · #5 14-06-11, 13:46

in one of the helicopter shots from above and behind you can see the skid marks in the dirt as they stopped in the shortest distance possible.

Not too much to recover apart from the engines.

Little Jo · #6 14-06-11, 15:15

Keith

I saw the footage on the news tonight, what a shame she certainly was a survivor, well if she had to go she went out with a bang, thank goodness all the crew survived and no one was hurt. I will certainly have to have another viewing of the "Mephis Belle" DVD.

Tony

horsa · #7 14-06-11, 15:52

Not very many left that are air worthy now. Think the world-wide count is 13 total.

My wife had the opportunity to fly on this fort when it toured Texas a couple of years ago. They would take seven passengers up and allow them to move around to the various crew positions once at a level cruising altitude.

A sad loss of history.

Local Chap · #8 15-06-11, 14:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keith Webb

in one of the helicopter shots from above and behind you can see the skid marks in the dirt as they stopped in the shortest distance possible.

Gosh, they must have good cameras in those helicopters if they can zoom in on the Pilot's underpants!

maple_leaf_eh · #9 16-06-11, 04:34

I slithered through a B17 about 20yrs ago in Geneseo, NY. I found it was cramped. The bomb racks for instance were rudimentary with some vertical slider racks on each side of a catwalk. The cockpit was very simple. It did what it was designed to do. The airmanship to get a burning plane down on its wheels and all aboard walk off is noteworthy. Let me be the first here to say, they don't make them like they used to.

Keith Webb · #10 16-06-11, 08:58

Yes I went through the one at Duxford and the bomb bay is indeed cramped, as are a lot of the bombers of the era.

Here's some more insight from a friend who is a warbird restorer and pilot.

Quote:

It may have been a fuel or oil system leak in the back of the engine which started the fire. From the pictures you can see that the inboard left hand propeller is feathered, so they must have shut that one down, but couldn’t extinguish the fire. Once it got hold of the fuel tank there wouldn’t have been any stopping it. The close-up of the rear fuselage is so tragic, showing the devastation of fire with aluminium, leaving only the control and trim cables connecting fore with aft. Yes I noticed too the wheel marks as seen from the air. Looked like soft ground with the vehicle making similar tracks. The tailwheel just tracked off line for the last part of the roll.

Quote:

Originally Posted by maple_leaf_eh

I slithered through a B17 about 20yrs ago in Geneseo, NY. I found it was cramped. The bomb racks for instance were rudimentary with some vertical slider racks on each side of a catwalk. The cockpit was very simple. It did what it was designed to do. The airmanship to get a burning plane down on its wheels and all aboard walk off is noteworthy. Let me be the first here to say, they don't make them like they used to.