# B-17 Crashes in Ilinois



## Catch22 (Jun 13, 2011)

B-17 Bomber Crashes in Suburbs | NBC Chicago

Terrible news. Everyone survived, but I think it's a wreck.


----------



## evangilder (Jun 13, 2011)

Glad the crew got out okay, but there are so few of these left.


----------



## B-17engineer (Jun 13, 2011)

This sucks


----------



## Airframes (Jun 13, 2011)

Good to know the crew are safe, but a B17 lost - and now the wait for the 'legacy' of the accident. No doubt there will be some groups calling for the banning of flights by warbirds, as there normally is after such incidents.


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Jun 13, 2011)

Damn that sucks. Glad to see the crew is alright. Shame that the airframe will probably be lost though.


----------



## Geedee (Jun 13, 2011)

Its the Liberty Belle !.

World War II plane makes firey emergency landing near Oswego - Courier News

She was flown over to Duxford a few yeasr ago by her owner Don Brooks (If I remember correctly ?)

Real pleased the crew got out safely and the pilot made the right decisions. Good man !!

Heres an update. Very sad to see.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news%2Flocal&id=8187278


----------



## Milosh (Jun 13, 2011)

From the photos looks like a complete write off.

B-17 bomber crashes, burns in Oswego

Liberty Belle


----------



## Night Fighter Nut (Jun 13, 2011)

It's Liberty Belle alright and she is a total loss. From the photos, her entire fuselage section from Cockpit to waist gunner positions is gone.  I saw this plane once. She was a beauty.


----------



## A4K (Jun 13, 2011)

Very sad news. Looks like she'll be good for salvagable parts at best.
Would question the decision to fly her for the airshow having been grounded for mechanical problems...


----------



## Thorlifter (Jun 13, 2011)

Oh that's sad. Glad for the crew though.


----------



## Crimea_River (Jun 13, 2011)

Very sad news.


----------



## Lighthunmust (Jun 13, 2011)

Have anymore details?


----------



## Geedee (Jun 13, 2011)

Lighthunmust said:


> Have anymore details?


 
Yup...more here...
http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/off-topic-misc/b-17-crashes-ilinois-29368.html


----------



## Tangopilot89 (Jun 13, 2011)

What a sad end to such a magnificent aircraft. I doubt that's recoverable


----------



## Aaron Brooks Wolters (Jun 13, 2011)

Very glad the crew made it out safely but sad to loose another piece of history.


----------



## marshall (Jun 13, 2011)

Sad news.


----------



## Torch (Jun 13, 2011)

wow,great for the crew, pity on the machine........


----------



## Lighthunmust (Jun 13, 2011)

A very sad day that fortunately did not include loss of life. Another mortally wounded Flying Fortress carries on the tradition of saving her crew. I hope the cause of her death was not due to negligence. That would be very sad. I worry that within the lifetime of anyone alive today the sight of a flying B-17 maybe nothing but a memory.


----------



## Bucksnort101 (Jun 13, 2011)

Co-worker just told me about this. He did not know the name of the aircraft other that it was a B-17 and it crashed near Chicago. Forst thought was that it was the Liberty Belle. She was just in Minneapolis a week ago, did not get a chance to go see her though. 
Glad to hear no one was injured, but it saddens me that a piece of history has been lost.


----------



## TheMustangRider (Jun 13, 2011)

Sad to see her lying on the ground in flames like her many counterparts did during the war, thankfully the crew is ok.
Another Flying Fort accomplishes its mission, saving its crew.


----------



## Readie (Jun 13, 2011)

Irreplaceable piece of flying history. What a shame to end up like this....


----------



## TheMustangRider (Jun 13, 2011)

Sad news.


----------



## Readie (Jun 13, 2011)

Oh dear, what a shame.
An irreplaceable piece of history gone.
Well bad
John


----------



## v2 (Jun 13, 2011)

very sad news....


----------



## Gnomey (Jun 13, 2011)

Very sad to see. At least the crew got out OK.


----------



## Shortround6 (Jun 13, 2011)

I am glad for the crew and sad at the loss of the aircraft.


----------



## vikingBerserker (Jun 13, 2011)

DAMMIT!


----------



## BikerBabe (Jun 13, 2011)

Damn! Thank God all aboard survived, but DAMN that's one helluva tragic loss of a beautiful plane!!!


----------



## Messy1 (Jun 13, 2011)

I saw Liberty Bell in Des Moines several years ago. Very sad to hear about it's demise. I am very happy there were no fatalities.


----------



## GrauGeist (Jun 13, 2011)

She's done...not much left to salvage, really 

Great, this new photo uploader is a total pain in the a**...didn't mean to upload the inflight shot...I'll fix the dang thing when I get home from work...

Actually, you know what guys, I think I'll leave that shot up of the 'Belle passing the Golden Gate, because that's the way we should remember her...a magnificent machine that survived against the odds and aged gracefully


----------



## ToughOmbre (Jun 13, 2011)

My favorite warbird. Like losing a close friend.

TO


----------



## ccheese (Jun 13, 2011)

One of the so called "witnesses" said an engine caught fire in flight, but if you look at the photo posted by GG, (post #30) none of the engines are burned.

So much for eye witness accounts.....

Charles


----------



## Milosh (Jun 13, 2011)

Supposedly the a/c had been grounded the day before because of a fuel leak in a tank. Was fixed with epoxy. Bet the epoxy let go and the leaking fuel ignited.


----------



## P-40K-5 (Jun 13, 2011)

here you can see where the fire started...


----------



## model299 (Jun 13, 2011)

Man, I sure am glad everyone is safe. The pilot obviously needed to get the thing onto the ground as quickly as possible.

Sad to see her burn like that. 

EDIT: Thinking about it, I remember now taking some video of an engine startup and a take off when it was in the Twin Cities some time ago. I'll try and get them posted when I get the time. pretty busy right now with family issues.


----------



## RabidAlien (Jun 13, 2011)

Great news, all 7 on board escaped the crash with no injuries. Bad news....the '17 is now spare parts. And, from the looks of it, not too many of those.  But, planes can be rebuilt. People cannot.

B-17 Bomber Crashes In Illinois: 'Flying Fortress' Burns In Chicago Suburbs (VIDEO)


----------



## T Bolt (Jun 13, 2011)

Very sad. I didn't realize it was in the area - only an hour away - or I might have tried to get a ride on it this last weekend.


----------



## GrauGeist (Jun 13, 2011)

ccheese said:


> One of the so called "witnesses" said an engine caught fire in flight, but if you look at the photo posted by GG, (post #30) none of the engines are burned.
> 
> So much for eye witness accounts.....
> 
> Charles


What I heard, was that the skipper had to shut down the engine (seen by the feathered prop on engine #3) and then fire was reported onboard (seen in P-40's post #34).

He made the right decision to set it down instead of trying to make it back to Aurora Muni, that right there most likely saved everyone aboard. A B-17 can handle an engine failure, but not fire


----------



## seesul (Jun 13, 2011)

One of my darlings has gone...I got tears in my eyes. Right now I´m having Americans on visit here. Their grandpa bailed out over my born town from a burning B-17G.
I was aboard of that plane in 2008 at Duxford. I got no words anymore...
It´s like loosing one of my best friends...


----------



## model299 (Jun 13, 2011)

Looking at P-40K's post. it looks like that fire broke out soon after takeoff. The gear doesn't look quite retracted all the way yet. There's way too much gear exposed. Looks like it happened really really fast.

Once again, I'm really glad the pilot got it on the ground and everyone aboard and on the ground are unhurt,. But boy, as you can tell from my name and avatar, I find this really really sad.


----------



## V-1710 (Jun 14, 2011)

At least everyone got out O.K.. No doubt the pilot did the right thing. Every time something like this happens, I wonder when aircraft like the B-17 will become too rare and too valuable to fly. I have enjoyed warbirds at airshows and museums many many times, but even so incidents like this make you question at what point do we say (sadly) enough is enough and we just can't afford to loose any more aircraft like this.


----------



## beaupower32 (Jun 14, 2011)

Boeing B-17 Liberty Belle crashes near Chicago | Boeing and Aerospace News - seattlepi.com







The restored Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress “Liberty Belle” crashed and burned in a cornfield outside of Chicago Monday, but the seven people on board escaped without serious injury, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The pilot made an emergency landing after reporting an engine fire, the Tribune reported. Photos from the scene show the plane broken and burned.

The Liberty Foundation’s B-17 was one of several that fly around the country, giving tours. It was built under contract by Lockheed toward the end of World War II and never saw any combat. The Liberty Foundation’s Don Brooks bought the plane at the turn of the century, painting it in the colors and nose art of a namesake B-17 that flew many missions with the 8th Air Force’s 390th bomb group, including missions with Brooks’ father as tail gunner.

So sad to see another relic gone, but glad that everyone made it out ok.


----------



## seesul (Jun 14, 2011)

Statement from Liberty Foundation Chief Pilot:
First, let me start off by sincerely thanking everyone for the outpouring of support that we are receiving. I am sorry that I have not yet had the opportunity to return the many phone calls, text or e-mails that I am receiving offering to help. Again, thank you for all of the kind words that we are receiving and for incredible offers to help emotionally, financially and/or with the recovery process. I hope this statement will help fill in a few details that everyone is wondering about that led to the loss of our “Liberty Belle”.

Yesterday morning, both our P-40 and B-17 were scheduled to fly from Aurora, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana. We were in Aurora for the weekend as a part of our scheduled tour. Over the course of the previous week, we completed a scheduled 25-hour inspection on the B-17 which was completed by Saturday. On Saturday, the weather stayed below the required ceiling to give any passenger flights, however the B-17 flew in the morning on a routine training proficiency flight, performing several patterns. Following the flight, other maintenance issues arose that required us to cancel our Sunday flying schedule for repairs. The maintenance performed has not been, in any way, associated to the chain of events that led to Monday’s fateful flight, but is being considered in the preliminary investigation. However, due to the media’s sensational (mis)reporting, there is a large amount of misinformation that continues to lead the news.

Here is what we do know… Flying in the left seat of the B-17 was Capt. John Hess. John has been flying our Liberty Belle since 2005 and one of our most experienced B-17 pilots. He is an active Delta Air Lines Captain with over 14,000 hours of flying experience and flys a variety of vintage WWII aircraft. In the right seat was Bud Sittic. While Bud is new to the Liberty Foundation this year, he is also incredibly experienced with over 14,000 hours of flying time in vintage and hi-performance aircraft. He is a retired Captain with Delta Air Lines.

The news misidentified the P-40 as flying chase during the accident. I was flying our P-40, however I had departed 20 minutes prior to the B-17’s takeoff on the short flight to Indianapolis to setup for the B-17’s arrival. The aircraft flying chase was a T-6 Texan flown by owner Cullen Underwood. Cullen is one of our rated B-17 Captains and an experienced aviator tagging along as a support ship.

The takeoff of both aircraft was uneventful and proceeded on-course southeast. Prior to exiting Aurora’s airport traffic area, the B-17 crew and passengers began investigating an acrid smell and started a turn back to the airport. Almost immediately thereafter, Cullen spotted flames coming from the left wing and reported over the radio that they were on fire.
As all pilots know, there are few emergency situations that are more critical than having an in-flight fire. While an in-flight fire is extremely rare, it can (and sometimes does) indiscriminately affect aircraft of any age or type. In-flight fires have led to the loss of not only aircraft, but often can result in catastrophic loss of life. It requires an immediate action on the flight crew, as the integrity of aircraft structure, systems and critical components are in question.
Directly below the B-17 was a farmer’s field and the decision was made to land immediately. Approximately 1 minute and 40 seconds from the radio report of the fire, the B-17 was down safely on the field. Within that 1:40 time frame, the crew shutdown and feathered the number 2 engine, activated the engine’s fire suppression system, lowered the landing gear and performed an on-speed landing. Bringing the B-17 to a quick stop, the crew and passengers quickly and safely exited the aircraft. Overhead in the T-6, Cullen professionally coordinated and directed the firefighting equipment which was dispatched by Aurora Tower to the landing location.
Unlike the sensational photos that you have all seen of the completely burned B-17 on the news, you will see from photos taken by our crew that our Liberty Belle was undamaged by the forced landing and at the time of landing, the wing fire damage was relatively small. The crew actually unloaded bags, then had the horrible task of watching the aircraft slowly burn while waiting for the fire trucks to arrive. There were high hopes that the fire would be extinguished quickly and the damage would be repairable. Those hopes were diminished as the fire trucks deemed the field too soft to cross due to the area’s recent rainfall. So while standing by our burning B-17 and watching the fire trucks parked at the field’s edge, they sadly watched the wing fire spread to the aircraft’s fuel cells and of course, you all have seen the end result. There is no doubt that had the fire equipment been able to reach our aircraft, the fire would have been quickly extinguished and our Liberty Belle would have been repaired to continue her worthwhile mission.
Let me go on the record by thanking the flight crew for their professionalism. Their actions were nothing short of heroic and their quick thinking, actions and experience led to a “successful” outcome to this serious in-flight emergency. John and Bud (and Cullen) did a remarkable job under extreme circumstances and performed spectacularly. While the leading news stories have repeatedly reported the “crash” of our B-17, fact is they made a successful forced landing and the aircraft was ultimately consumed by fire. Airplanes are replaceable but people are not and while the aircraft’s loss is tragic, it was a successful result.
This leads me into discussing the exceptional safety record of the Boeing B-17 and to hopefully squash the naysayers who preach we should not be flying these types of aircraft. Since we first flew the “Liberty Belle” in December of 2004, we have flown over 20,000 passengers throughout the country and if you count our historic trip to Europe in 2008, worldwide. Of the other touring B-17s, some of which that have been touring for over 20 years, they have safely flown hundreds of thousands of people. The aircraft’s safety record is spectacular and I am certain the overall cause of our issue, which is under investigation, will not tarnish that safety record. In fact, as many of you know, other B-17 have suffered significant damage (although not as bad as ours!), only to be re-built to fly again. From a passenger carrying standpoint, I can think of few aircraft that offer the same level of safety as the 4-engine “Flying Fortress”. As mentioned earlier, in-flight fires are extremely rare and certainly could affect any powered aircraft under certain circumstances. I would put my children today in any of the other touring B-17s to go fly. I suggest to anyone that was thinking of doing so when a B-17 visits your area to do so without giving our loss any thought.
There is wild speculation going on as to the cause of our fire and the affect to other operators. Please let the investigation run its course and report the findings. The NTSB and FAA were quickly on the scene and we are working closely with them to aid in the investigation. As soon as we receive some additional information, we will release it via the website.
The ultimate question remains, where does the Liberty Foundation go from here? After the investigation and recovery, we will determine our options. We are still committed to the restoration and flying of World War II aircraft. Again, we appreciate the support and people offering to help get us back flying.
Please check back for updates. I will close by thanking everyone that made our tour so successful. From the first day of the B-17’s restoration, thank you for all of you who labored to get her flying over the initial restoration years and to everyone that has worked on her out on tour since. Thank you to the crewmembers, tour coordinators and volunteers who gave up weekends and countless hours to support her on the road. And finally, thank you to the passengers, donors and media patrons that flew aboard and everyone who supported our cause. Hopefully, this will not be the end of the story, but a new beginning.

http://www.libertyfoundation.org/index.html


----------



## seesul (Jun 14, 2011)

Video taken after the crash landing

_View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8Mi9WoQD_4_


----------



## seesul (Jun 15, 2011)

P-40K-5 said:


> here you can see where the fire started...


Looking at the picture I´d say the fire wasn´t caused by the engine but it looks like it goes from the wing.
Leaky fuel tank perhaps?


----------



## Matt308 (Jun 15, 2011)

I'm a broken record. Quit flying these museum treasures.

Bring the hate.


----------



## B-17engineer (Jun 15, 2011)

Matt308 said:


> I'm a broken record. Quit flying these museum treasures.
> 
> Bring the hate.


 
Run Matt, hide your family!


----------



## Vassili Zaitzev (Jun 15, 2011)

Glad to hear the crew's safe, but damn shame.


----------



## GrauGeist (Jun 16, 2011)

lmao Matt

You know that's gonna get the hackles up on more than a few people


----------



## Rivet (Jun 16, 2011)

The article posted regarding the Illinois crash of the B-17 near Oswego cites a production run of 238,000 for the type, a bit overoptimistic by over 200,000. Gladdened to read that the seven blood sacks inside made it out unopened. Regards


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Jun 17, 2011)

Matt308 said:


> I'm a broken record. Quit flying these museum treasures.
> 
> Bring the hate.



I actually agree with you.

One part of me wants to see them fly forever, but for me it is better to see it in a museum then never see it all.


----------



## model299 (Jun 17, 2011)

Matt308 said:


> I'm a broken record. Quit flying these museum treasures.
> 
> Bring the hate.



No hate here. I might have given you an argument before now, but I'm beginning to wonder if it ISN'T time to start parking these. At least some of the rarer ones. The problem is, many of them are in private hands, and it's a pretty tough thing to tell someone what they should do with their property.


----------



## Pong (Jun 18, 2011)

Saw this on Flickr. I can't believe the old bird is gone.


----------



## Njaco (Jun 19, 2011)

[email protected]!!!


----------



## icepac (Jun 19, 2011)

It didn't crash

It landed.

There are more flying and static warbirds now than there were 30 years ago.


----------



## Gnomey (Jun 19, 2011)

I know she landed and then burned but that is a right mess. A real shame to see.


----------



## Njaco (Jul 6, 2011)

another pic......


----------



## imalko (Jul 6, 2011)

Shame...


----------



## B-17engineer (Jul 6, 2011)

Yeah unless private owners run out of money no one will tell them if they can and can't fly it....except the FAA.....


----------



## vikingBerserker (Jul 6, 2011)

That just makes my stomach turn seeing that.


----------



## jjp_nl (Jul 7, 2011)

A very sad thing to have happened indeed! I've only seen a B-17 twice (in 1995 as young lad I think 'Sally B' might have done medium altitude fly-by's over all the cities where major festivities were organized for the 50th anniversary of Liberation Day, and last year on an Airshow nearby) But boy....was that a sight to see. What can I say, when four big radials make the ground rumble something good is happening.

Very glad the crew got out alright, but it must be heart breaking for all the good folks (flying and ground-crew alike) to see all their passionate hard work go to waste like this.


----------



## RabidAlien (Jul 9, 2011)

Not sure if I'd say their hard work "went to waste"...the plane got the crew down safely (not saying anything against the skills of the flight crew, but a top-notch crew is only as good as the bird they're riding). Makes ya think, though....if Bob, back at base, had decided to not tighten that bolt all the way and knocked off a little early to go meet his girlfriend, the story might be totally different. I think the Belle gave all she had, and put up a good fight to the end.


----------

