[Ghengis]

Airliner center fuel tanks spontaneously explode all the time. It's a well known natural phenomenon.

I understand that this theory is a joke amongst those involved in airline security/safety. It seems that the explosion could not ever be emulated as the investigators claim.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

I understand that this theory is a joke amongst those involved in airline security/safety. It seems that the explosion could not ever be emulated as the investigators claim.

I hope you also understood that I was being sarcastic.

[Knuckledragger]

Man, there's a lot of black helicopters flying today.

At least two other aircraft have experienced center wing fuel tank explosions in the last dozen years. In 1990, a Philippines Airlines 737 plane exploded while being pushed back from the gate. Sometime later, a similar fate met a Thailand Airlines 737 plane while standing at the gate.

"In each center fuel tank explosion, the tanks were almost empty, and the remaining fuel was heated by use of air conditioning packs located under the center wing fuel tank," Kauffman said. "If the heated fuel vapors in the center wing tanks reached their flash point temperatures, they would become explosive in the presence of a sufficient ignition source."

Flt 800 had similar conditions.

[Smokin' Joe]

I understand that this theory is a joke amongst those involved in airline security/safety. It seems that the explosion could not ever be emulated as the investigators claim.

Oh, I dunno, give NBC enough 747s and lots of sparklers and flares, they might get one to go for the cameras...it worked with the GM pickups, iirc.