The last time I talked to my father about this, they were still floating the static electricity from microscopic cracks theory. Not sure where he got that info (news or scuttlebutt at JFK) but he called BS.
That may have influenced my tendency to not believe the official report. That and my fondness of Boeing and 747s in particular.
I never spoke to him about the subject again. By the time I heard about the damaged wiring/stray voltage issue, he was gone. I was still skeptical, but after reading about the NTSB findings in the last few days, what struck me is how hot the fuel was. I had no idea that the fuel in the tanks would be kept above the flashpoint at all, let alone that far above it.
Yet.... private planes SIT around smaller airports for days or weeks with tanks FULL of fuel. Sitting there in the glaring sun with no external 'cooling' equipment. With a fuel (gasoline) which is WAY MORE VOLATILE than Jet fuel.
Never seen any of them blow up.