UPS flight 2976 crash - what we know so far
- Av Geek Blog
- 29 minutes ago
- 10 min read
On 4th November 2025, UPS flight 2976 crashed on takeoff from Louisville, Kentucky. The flight to Honolulu was operated by a McDonnell Douglas MD-11F. The crash resulted in the death of 9 people, including the three crew members on board.
In this blog post, I take a look at what we know so far about the accident, largely based on the NTSB preliminary report. I examine the suspected cause and aftermath of the crash and look at whether there is any relation between this crash and the crash of American Airlines flight 191 in 1979.
Please note that this information is preliminary and subject to change.
Brief summary
Date: 4 November 2025
Time: 22:13 UTC (17:13 local time)
Flight: UPS2976
Airline: UPS Airlines
Aircraft type: McDonnell Douglas MD-11F
Aircraft reg: N259UP
Departure: Louisville International Airport (SDF)
Scheduled arrival: Honolulu
Incident: Crashed on departure
UPS flight 2976 was a flight from Louisville, Kentucky to Honolulu. The flight was operated by an MD-11F with registration N259UP. The aircraft crashed on takeoff with 9 people confirmed dead, including the three crew members, and multiple people with severe injuries.
The aircraft began its takeoff roll on runway 17R at approximately 22:12:24 UTC. The aircraft appears to have suffered a catastrophic mechanical failure before becoming airborne from runway 17R at about 22:13 UTC. The aircraft crashed just outside the airport perimeter causing a massive fire engulfing multiple structures and cutting power to an area south of the airport. The last ADS-B position from the aircraft was received at 22:13:30 UTC and the highest ground speed recorded was 186 knots.
The MD-11F burns about 7500kg of fuel per hour. This means, including reserve fuel, the trip from Louisville to Honolulu would require about 75 tonnes of fuel in total.
Aircraft information
UPS flight 2976 was operated by a McDonnell Douglas MD-11F with registration N259UP. The aircraft was 34 years old and first delivered to Thai Airways International in 1991 for passenger service. The aircraft was converted to freighter configuration in 2006 and entered service with UPS. The aircraft was powered by three General Electric CF6-80C2D1F engines.
Investigative updates - Aftermath of the crash timeline
Since the accident a number of updates have been released. These are noted below along with the date they were announced.
5 November 2025
On 5 November the updates detailed that airport CCTV showed the left engine (engine 1) detaching from the aircraft wing on airport property. It was also revealed that the post crash fire extended for 0.5 miles. The Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR) were both recovered. However, the recorders sustained heat exposure but the NTSB announced that they would be able to retrieve data from both recorders. The NTSB also announced that 28 NTSB staff were on scene by the end of the day (Wednesday 5 November).
6 November 2025
It was announced that overnight the NTSB had flown the CVR and FDR to Washington where recorder specialists were able to extract data from both memory modules. It was also announced that during the NTSB's Foreign Object Debris (FOD) walk on the airfield, multiple engine fan blade pieces were recovered. The number one engine (left engine) was also recovered on the airfield and moved to a secure storage area.
7 November 2025
It was announced that the CVR contained 2 hours and 4 minutes of good audio. From the CVR recording, the takeoff roll was uneventful. 37 seconds after takeoff thrust was applied, a "persistent bell" is heard. This bell continues until the end of the recording 25 seconds later. The NTSB also confirmed that the bulk of the engine pylon was still connected to the left engine as it separated from the aircraft.
Also on 7 November 2025, both UPS and FedEx grounded their MD-11 fleet with immediate effect based on recommendations from Boeing. (Boeing assumed responsibility for the aircraft after their merger with McDonnell Douglas). UPS operates a fleet of 26 MD-11s while FedEx operates a fleet of 29.
20 November 2025
On 20 November 2025, the NTSB released its preliminary report on the crash including details on the sequence of events and findings from the engine pylon assembly. Preliminary examination of the engine pylon found fatigue cracking in multiple locations.
The preliminary report and the details in it are expanded in the section below.
14 January 2026
On 14 January 2026 the NTSB released an update following material analysis of the spherical bearing assembly from the number one engine. The NTSB found evidence of fracturing and fatigue cracking in the bearings race. The NTSB notes that this bearing appears to be consistent with assemblies which had previously been the subject of a Boeing Service Letter following four bearing assembly failures on 3 separate aircraft prior to February 2011. The NTSB also provided an update on the preliminary FDR readout. The FDR showed only engine 1 fire parameter changed from "no fire" to "fire". Engine 2 showed "minor perturbations" in the data also.
As a result of this accident, UPS has announced that it has retired its MD-11 fleet. The aircraft type is currently grounded pending inspections following the crash in Louisville. UPS stated that the company has accelerated its fleet modernization plans, completing the retirement of the MD-11 is Q4 2025. The gap in the company's operations left by the MD-11 grounding and retirement will be filled by new deliveries of the 767 freighter and contract flights. The UPS MD-11 fleet was already slated for retirement as new 767 freighters joined the fleet, but the grounding has brought forward these plans. At the moment, UPS has 26 MD-11 aircraft parked at 15 airports in the United States and Canada. It is unclear how or when these jets will make their way to a final location.
What happened - from preliminary report
The following data comes from the NTSB preliminary report.
Please note that this information is preliminary and subject to change.
On November 4th 2025, about 17:14 Eastern Standard Time (EST), United Parcel Service (UPS) flight 2976, operated by a McDonnell-Douglas MD-11 airplane with registration N259UP was destroyed after it impacted the ground shortly after takeoff from runway 17R at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF), Louisville, Kentucky. Flight 2976 was a domestic cargo flight from SDF to Honolulu (HNL) Hawaii. The three crew members on the aircraft and 11 people on the ground were killed while 23 other people on the ground were also injured.
History of the flight
UPS flight 2976 received their takeoff clearance from SDF ATC tower at about 17:11 EST and the flight crew acknowledged the takeoff clearance.
The taxi and takeoff roll were uneventful until the airplane rotated for takeoff.
Airport surveillance video of the airplane showed the left (number one) engine and pylon separating from the wing shortly after the airplane rotation, with a fire igniting on the left engine while it traversed above the fuselage and then impacted the ground. A fire ignited near the area of the left pylon attachment to the wing, which continued until ground impact.
The airplane initially climbed but did not get higher than about 30 feet above ground level (agl) according to the radio altimeter data from the FDR.
The aircraft cleared the blast fence beyond the end of runway 17R, but the left main landing gear impacted the roof of a UPS Supply Chain Solutions warehouse at the southern edge of the airport. The airplane then impacted a storage yard and two additional buildings, including a petroleum recycling facility, and was mostly consumed by fire.
The wreckage area continued from the UPS warehouse to about 3000 feet south-southeast of it.
A witness in the SDF ATC tower reported that the takeoff speed appeared normal for that type of aircraft, however, the climb rate was not normal as the airplane did not climb above the tower's height of about 200 feet agl. Another witness reported that the airplane stopped climbing and began to lose altitude before rolling slightly to the left.
Crew Experience
On this flight the Captain was the pilot monitoring while the first officer was the pilot flying. The relief officer was also on board. All three pilots held an airline transport pilot certificate with a type rating for the MD-11.
Recorders
The aircraft was equipped with a FDR and CVR which were both recovered from the accident scene and transported to the NTSB vehicle recorders laboratory in Washington D.C. Data from both black boxes were downloaded successfully. The CVR contained about 2 hours and 4 minutes of recorded data, including the entirety of the accident flight. Meanwhile, the FDR had about 63 hours of data that spanned 24 flights, including the accident flight. The flight data for the accident flight started at about 17:07 EST with the takeoff roll starting at about 17:12 EST. The flight data ended about 17:13:30 EST.
About the MD-11
The MD-11 is a three-engine widebody passenger aircraft originally manufactured by McDonnell Douglas, which later merged with The Boeing Company. The MD-11 was developed from the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 series airplane. The MD-11F is the freighter version of the MD-11. The MD-11 can be equipped with either GE CF-6 series or Pratt and Whitney PW4000 series engines. The accident aircraft was equipped with GE CF-6 series engines.
About UPS
UPS is a cargo airline based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company operates a variety of aircraft including the Boeing 757-200F, Boeing 767-300F, Airbus A300-6000F, McDonnell-Douglas MD-11F, Boeing 747-400F and Boeing 747-8F.
FlightRadar24 data shows that the airline has the following aircraft in its fleet:
Aircraft Type | Number of aircraft |
Airbus A300-600F | 52 |
Boeing 757-200F | 75 |
Boeing 767-300F | 100 |
Boeing 747-400F | 13 |
Boeing 747-8F | 30 |
McDonnell-Douglas MD-11F* | 26 |
*Since the accident, the airline has brought forward its fleet modernization plans and retired the MD-11F from its fleet as detailed above.
Recovery Operations and wreckage examination
The NTSB preliminary report states that the aircraft wreckage was spread over a wide area and significantly fragmented and burned. the left engine, left pylon (including its forward and aft mounts), fragments of engine fan blades, and separated pieces from the left engine were found on and adjacent to runway 17R. Recovered portions were transferred to a secure hanger on the airport property for further examination by investigators.
Maintenance and inspections
At the time of the accident, the accident airplane had accumulated a total time of about 92,992 hours and 21,043 cycles. The preliminary report states that a review of the inspection tasks for the left pylon aft mount found both a general visual inspection and a detailed visual inspection of the left pylon aft mount was last accomplished on 28 October 2021. A 24 month/4,800 hour lubrication task of the pylon thrust links and pylon spherical bearings was last accomplished on 18 October 2025.
Safety actions
UPS grounded their MD-11 fleet on 7 November 2025 as a precautionary measure at the recommendation of Boeing. The FAA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive on 8 November 2025 that prohibited further flight of MD-11 and MD-11F airplanes until they were inspected and all applicable corrective actions were taken. The FAA subsequently issued another Emergency Airworthiness Directive on 14 November 2025 which superseded the Emergency Airworthiness Directive of 8 November 2025 and included both MD-11 and DC-10 series airplanes, the latter included because of its similar design to the MD-11.
Similar events
Interestingly, the NTSB preliminary report briefly discusses the crash of American Airlines flight 191 which happened in May 1979.
On 25 May 1979 at about 15:04 Central Daylight Time, American Airlines flight 191, a McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 aircraft, crashed into an open field just short of a trailer park about 4,600 feet northwest of the departure end of runway 32R at Chicago-O'Hare International Airport. Flight 191 was taking off from runway 32R. The weather was clear and the visibility was 15 miles. During the takeoff rotation, the left engine and pylon assembly and some of the leading edge of the left wing separated from the aircraft and fell to the runway. Flight 191 continued to climb to about 325 feet agl and then began to roll to the left. The airplane continued to roll to the left until the wings were past the vertical position, and during the roll, the airplane's nose pitched down below the horizon.
Flight 191 crashed into the open field and the wreckage scattered into an adjacent trailer park. The aircraft was destroyed in the crash and the subsequent fire. 271 people on board the plane were killed, 2 people on the ground were killed and 2 others seriously injured. The NTSB also investigated this crash and published a report.
Obviously there are some similarities between the UPS crash of November 2025 and the American Airlines flight 191 crash of 1979 and I find it interesting that this incident is mentioned in the preliminary report. Some of these similarities include:
The aircraft - the DC-10 had a similar design to the MD-11.
The circumstances - both accidents involved the aircraft crashing shortly after takeoff.
Engine separation - in both accidents, the left engine separated from the wing, falling to the ground.
These are just some of the obvious similarities between the two accidents, but it is important to remember that just because there are similarities between the two accidents, does not mean that the causes of both accidents are the same but it is interesting to think about and it will be interesting to see if this crash is mentioned further in the final report.
Keep an eye out for an upcoming blog post where I will take a look at the American Airlines flight 191 DC-10 crash in more detail.
The NTSB is continuing their investigation into this crash. It is important too remember that this information is preliminary and subject to change.
Clearly the NTSB investigation has started with some good leads and it appears there is a clear sense of direction for investigators to follow at this stage in order to determine the cause of this accident. Personally, I was intrigued by the mention of the American Airlines flight 191 accident in the preliminary report but it is a testament to the lengths the investigators go to in their investigations. It will be interesting to see how far investigators will follow this lead and what (if any) information is relevant to the cause of both crashes.
What do you think about this accident? And what do you think about the early retirement of the MD-11 from the UPS fleet? It will be disappointing to see one less carrier operate a tri-jet in the skies. Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below, on our group discussion page, or on our social media posts. If you are interested in reading more materials about this aviation accident, check the further reading section below.
Further Reading**
There are some great resources online about this crash that provide a more depth analysis and explanation of the events. Check these out below.
The following links are provided for informational purposes only. I am not responsible for the content, accuracy, or practices of external websites.
NTSB - Flight 2976 Crash During Takeoff Preliminary Report
https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Documents/Preliminary%20Report%20DCA26MA024.pdf
FlightRadar24 - UPS MD-11 crashes departing Louisville
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