B-17 "Liberty Bell" crashes, burns

[Story]

June 13, 2011 (OSWEGO, Ill.) (WLS) -- A WWII bomber plane caught fire after a crash landing in far west suburban Oswego Monday morning. No one was injured.

Seven people were onboard the plane. Officials say they all walked away from the crash near Minkler Road and Route 71.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=8187278

 

[Rathdown]

Good Lord! What an historical loss; such a tragedy.

 

[Michaelson]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43380811/ns/us_news-life/

Here's MSNBC's contribution.

Regards! Michaelson

 

[dhermann1]

I find this profoundly upsetting. It just brings up again the whole debate about the appropriateness of flying these aircraft. I am firmly in the camp of DON'T FLY THEM! They're just too rare and precious to risk. How many B-17's are left now, either flying or static? Can't be very many.
Just damned lucky nobody was hurt. Damned lucky.

 

[MisterCairo]

There are I believe only two flying Lancaster bombers in the world, one at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Hamilton, Ontario. It regularly flies, and I imagine that if someone said "that's it, it's a lawn ornament from now on", there would be one hue and cry!

Very glad all made it out in this case!

 

[ButteMT61]

That's awful news. I took my wife and son on the "Aluminum Overcast" 3 years back in LA and it was UNREAL!!! Sad this happened as it costs so much in time, money and volunteer hours to get one of these historical planes in the air.
But WORSE is that this now brings more negative attention (which had already begun) to allowing the public to enjoy these rides. I hope this isn't the end of these opportunities, and I'm glad all as OK!

 

[ButteMT61]

I find this profoundly upsetting. It just brings up again the whole debate about the appropriateness of flying these aircraft. I am firmly in the camp of DON'T FLY THEM! They're just too rare and precious to risk. How many B-17's are left now, either flying or static? Can't be very many.
Just damned lucky nobody was hurt. Damned lucky.

I feel you, but disagree with you. Take a ride sometime (start saving now, it's not cheap) and you'll never ever think that again. I have video and pix of the day we spent, and it was one of the best of my life.

 

[DocMustang]

I find this profoundly upsetting. It just brings up again the whole debate about the appropriateness of flying these aircraft. I am firmly in the camp of DON'T FLY THEM! They're just too rare and precious to risk. How many B-17's are left now, either flying or static? Can't be very many.
Just damned lucky nobody was hurt. Damned lucky.

Not flying these majestic birds would be just as significant a tradgedy as crashing them. Those few Warbirds and Bombers that are still airworthy are the best form of living history. Seeng one of these grounded in an exhibit is wonderful but there is always the sense that you are looking at a mere sculpture. It is as if you are staring at a corpse.

Seeing, or better still, experiencing these incredible machines while they are still alive, breathing and flying is an amazing opportunity. Ground them when they are not airworthy anymore but keep the good ones flying.

 

[cco23i]

Yes letting the old girls rot away in a museum is a tradgedy in itself. I have flown on many and to see thwe vets faces when the lift off for some their last time is a priceless experience. Gladd all got our O.K.

Scott

 

[Land-O-LakesGal]

My Husband and I just took our kids to see it when it was here a few weekends ago. My husband said that engine number 3 was looking real oily and they were working on it. YIKES at least no one was hurt.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...nvolving-wwii-bomber-20110613,0,5852034.story

 

[Murph351]

So sorry to hear that she went down.
Luckily everyone was OK.
I'm sure glad I got a chance to go up in her.
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?27594-My-quot-mission-quot-back-in-time.&highlight=

 

[tonyb]

Pardon my ignorance here, but don't airframes have a service life? Or are all the components that might be adversely affected by all those takeoffs and landings and hours in the air replaceable and/or repairable?

 

[EmergencyIan]

What a damn shame!


- Ian

 

[dhermann1]

It wasn't the airframe, it was an engine fire. See the comment above. It would really be a shame if this turned out to be a case of sub par maintanance.

 

[cco23i]

Pardon my ignorance here, but don't airframes have a service life? Or are all the components that might be adversely affected by all those takeoffs and landings and hours in the air replaceable and/or repairable?

Tony,
With proper maintenance and such airframes can go a LONG time. The warbirds aren't like a commercial jet that lands, fuels and goes again, they don't wrack up the hours like commercials do. Heck I know one of our KC-135's that was built in 1959 only had 17,000 hours on the airframe.

Scott

 

[Deco_Green]

That's terrible. It made me sick to see it on fire like that. Amazingly and thankfully no one was killed.
But, I have to agree that as bad as a loss like this is, it would be a shame not to fly them. Just last month I saw a B-17 (and lots of other beauties) fly at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach. There's just something about seeing the Warbirds in the air where they're supposed to be. My breath catches every time one roars down the field on take-off, or makes a low pass at what seems just above eye level. I'd hate to see them grounded. It just wouldn't be the same.

 

[RichardH]

Such a tragedy, I am truly saddened, but with that being said, there´s nothing more sad than seeing vintage aircraft on the ground (or any other aircraft for that matter) .. Planes belong in the sky.

 

[rue]

That is so sad

 

[tonyb]

Tony,
With proper maintenance and such airframes can go a LONG time. The warbirds aren't like a commercial jet that lands, fuels and goes again, they don't wrack up the hours like commercials do. Heck I know one of our KC-135's that was built in 1959 only had 17,000 hours on the airframe.

Scott

Thanks for that, Scott. Isn't it also so that the cabins in those WWII-era military aircraft are, for the largest part, not pressurized, unlike modern jet aircraft, which are? My understanding (such as it is) is that all that expansion and contraction a pressurized-cabin modern jet aircraft endures takes a toll. Witness that couple of incidents of older Boeing 737s suddenly becoming open-air models.