UPS grounds entire MD-11 fleet indefinitely after Louisville crash

UPS Airlines has grounded an entire fleet of its cargo planes indefinitely, warning of months of grounding during the peak holiday season.

The airline does not expect its fleet of McDonnell Douglas MD-11s, the type of plane involved in a fatal accident in Louisville, Kentucky, on Nov. 4, to return to service for several months, according to the Associated Press.

The engine of a UPS cargo plane fell and caught fire shortly after takeoff from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. The Honolulu-bound plane crashed at about 5:15 p.m., crashing into a nearby industrial park and killing 14 people, including the three crew members and 11 people on the ground.

Black box data indicates the plane made it only about 30 feet above ground level before crashing, and newly released images from the National Transportation Safety Board show a burning fire in the left engine.

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UPS temporarily grounded the fleet immediately after the incident and began work to meet FAA guidelines before returning to service.

The process was initially expected to take weeks, but will now extend to several months, according to a memo from UPS Airlines CEO Bill Moore, the Associated Press reported.

“With respect to the MD-11 fleet, Boeing’s ongoing assessment shows that inspections and potential repairs will be more extensive than initially anticipated,” Moore wrote in the memo.

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UPS has temporarily grounded a fleet of cargo planes following a Nov. 4 crash that killed 14 people. (Credit: X/@WT_Mason)

On November 7, UPS announced it had grounded its fleet of MD-11s “out of an abundance of caution and in the interest of safety.”

Aircraft represent approximately 9% of the company’s fleet.

“Contingency plans have been put in place to ensure we can continue to provide the reliable service our customers around the world depend on,” UPS said in the statement earlier this month.

Immediately after the accident, the FAA issued an emergency airworthiness directive to owners and operators of Boeing MD-11 and MD-11F aircraft after determining that the unsafe condition was likely to exist in other products.

FedEx said after the incident that it had grounded the MD-11 planes as well.

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The incident occurred on November 4 near the UPS Worldport at Louisville Airport. (google maps)

Fox Business has reached out to UPS for comment.