On Tuesday, November
4, 2025, at approximately 7:23 p.m., a UPS McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) MD-11F Freighter
aircraft crashed and erupted into flames upon departure from
Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky. The
MD-11F Trijet wide-body cargo jet was headed to Daniel K. Inouye International
Airport in Honolulu, Hawaii. All three people on board were killed, and at
least eleven others on the ground were killed or injured in the crash. A Washington Post news report stated that
UPS is Louisville, KY’s largest employer.
People who are injured, or families that have suffered a death as a result of the crash, can bring claims forward against a myriad of entities, potentially including UPS, Boeing, General Electric or other parties.
Kreindler attorneys have represented the victims of two previous UPS cargo aircraft disasters, one in 2010 and another in 2013. The 2010 crash was eerily similar in that it also involved a fire in-flight on the UPS cargo jet.
Kreindler Partner & Veteran Military Pilot Daniel Rose
Announced on November 11, 2025, Kreindler attorney Dan Rose was named by Lexis Nexis’ Law360 as an MVP Award Winner in the field of Transportation Law. Dan was the only U.S. plaintiffs’ attorney selected for the honor in Transportation Law. Per Law360, the attorneys chosen have distinguished themselves from their peers by securing significant achievements in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters and record-breaking deals.
A retired NTSB investigator previously told The Washington Post that severe fire at the crash site “suggests significant disruption of the engine fuel supply,” which could be a possible consequence of an uncontained engine failure, when a high-speed rotating part of an engine fractures, which can result in catastrophic damage to the engine and then other parts of the palne itself. In 2018, Kreindler attorneys successfully represented victims of a notable uncontained engine failure - the 2018 Southwest Airlines Flight #1380 case, in which mid-air debris caused by an engine blade failure ruptured the airplane’s cabin and window and resulted in the tragic death of one passenger and injured many others.
In the Louisville crash, after the UPS jet caught fire, it then plowed into a factory plant. According to a Reuters news article, Kentucky
Governor Andy Beshear said, “We’ve got some initial numbers, but let me
tell you I expect them to grow … right now we believe we have at least
three fatalities. I believe that number is going to get larger. We have at
least 11 injuries, some of them very significant, that are being treated by
local hospitals.”
According to the website Flightradar24, the
McDonnell Douglas MD-11F wide-body cargo plane, registry number N259UP, was
34 years old. In 1991, the aircraft was delivered to Thai Airways International
as a passenger plane, and in 2006, it was reconfigured into a freighter for
UPS. The MD-11F aircraft was equipped with three General Electric CF6-80C2D1F
engines. The left engine was found on the runway having apparently separated during the takeoff roll. Several sources have reported that the Louisville flight was delayed for two hours do to maintenance issues with the left engine.
In the Media
Partner Dan Rose spoke with Louisville’s Courier Journal newspaper regarding the quick decision to ground all McDonnell Douglas MD-11 aircraft by both the manufacturer, Boeing, and the FAA.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating the crash of the
McDonnell Douglas MD-11F.
On November 8, 2025, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2025-23-51, which was sent to owners and operators of The Boeing Company Model MD-11 and MD-11F airplanes.
This emergency AD was issued following the UPS Flight 2976 airplane crash in Louisville, KY in which the left-hand engine and pylon detached from the airplane during takeoff.
An unsafe condition exists that requires the immediate adoption of this emergency AD to all known U.S. owners and operators of these airplanes. The FAA has found that the risk to the flying public and safety in air commerce justifies forgoing notice and comment prior to adoption of this rule because the severity of the unsafe condition necessitates prohibiting further flight until the airplane is inspected and the applicable corrective actions are performed.
Kreindler Has Previous Experience Following UPS Airplane Crashes
Kreindler partners Dan Rose and Evan Katin-Borland represented the
husband of the first officer following the fatal 2013 crash of a UPS cargo
plane that had departed from Louisville, Kentucky, and was attempting a landing
in Birmingham, Alabama. The lawsuit cited a faulty Honeywell Aerospace ground
warning system that malfunctioned, failing to alert the pilots in time.
Kreindler attorneys also represented the family of a first officer who was killed as the result of a 2010 crash of a UPS international cargo flight attempting to land near Dubai International Airport. This was the first fatal crash of a UPS cargo flight and the investigation showed that even though fire began in the cargo area of the plane, it engulfed the plane and eventually caused the crash near the airport.
About Kreindler
Kreindler is
the preeminent aviation accident law firm in the world. Our attorneys have been
appointed leading counsel in nearly every major commercial airline disaster
case in the U.S. and abroad. The firm was recently named 2024 Transportation
Law Firm of the Year by the National Law Journal. Kreindler’s aviation practice
is led by attorneys who are also commercial-rated, veteran military pilots.
Kreindler’s aviation accident attorneys have achieved an unmatched record of
success representing people globally who have been injured or lost family
members in international and domestic airline disasters. Our firm maintains
offices in New York, Boston and Los Angeles.
Endnotes
Photo Credit: UPS MD-11F airplane via Flickr by Cory Barnes
People who are injured, or families that have suffered a death as a result of the crash, can bring claims forward against a myriad of entities, potentially including UPS, Boeing, General Electric or other parties.
