 When attacking "Luftwaffe" bombers, it was discovered that the Hurricane's fuel tanks were vulnerable to defensive machine gun fire.The greatest hazard was with the unprotected gravity-feed fuel tank in front of the cockpit which could rupture when hit, allowing a jet of flame to penetrate the cockpit through the instrument panel, causing serious burn injuries to the pilot.The wooden and fabric rear fuselage was also far more likely to catch fire than the metal fuselages of its contemporaries.