A fuel leak aboard the World War II-era B-17 bomber “Liberty Belle” caused the in-flight fire that destroyed the historic airplane when it made an emergency landing in an Illinois corn field in June 2011, the NTSB said in its final accident report.
According to investigators, the weekend before the crash mechanics identified a fuel leak, which was subsequently repaired. A final inspection on the morning of the accident flight did not reveal any evidence of a leak and the airplane was cleared for flight.
