B-17E Flying Fortress 41-9012 destroyed by a fire while parked in a hangar at Mareeba Airfield Ken Elder Bledsoe adds: "In my father's Vernon O. Elder black & white photos there are several pics of the [B-17] [nicknamed] 'Phantom' burning. According to Ralph Dietz, in his interview with us, the ground crew was cleaning oil off the engines with gasoline before they were completely cooled. That's what caused the fire." Credit: Vernon O. Elder via Ken Elder Bledsoe (son) Date: November 5, 1942
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