UPS MD-11 Crashes on Takeoff

The government is the people. People make up institutions. Institutions are relationships between people. Government are your friends, cousins, buddies etc.
NTSB are pure professionals. Either something happened or did not. These people devoted their entire careers to this and they won’t budge if someone gets some wild idea to use this for their own personal agenda. Like in DoD, 99% of people do their job best they can tuning out political noise and with that moving institution forward every day and fulfilling mission.
Next, information is out in open! It is not like someone can hide what happened.

Sadly, I’ve been around these NTSB personnel before. Its above statement is correct. 99.9%.Sadly, I’ve been around these NTSB personnel before. It’s above statement is correct. 99.9% of these individuals truly do care, they strive to get to the root cause of the incident. They work for the people. They work for the families and those that have lost loved ones.

Just because they are government, it doesn’t automatically preclude conspiracies. I must admit personally I could not do the job they do. I don’t have the mental capacity to go through the aftermath of a aircraft incident again.

These people should be revered with respect and admiration. They sacrifice a great deal to help create a safer flying environment. For the pilots and for the passengers.
 
Sadly, I’ve been around these NTSB personnel before. Its above statement is correct. 99.9%.Sadly, I’ve been around these NTSB personnel before. It’s above statement is correct. 99.9% of these individuals truly do care, they strive to get to the root cause of the incident. They work for the people. They work for the families and those that have lost loved ones.

Just because they are government, it doesn’t automatically preclude conspiracies. I must admit personally I could not do the job they do. I don’t have the mental capacity to go through the aftermath of a aircraft incident again.

These people should be revered with respect and admiration. They sacrifice a great deal to help create a safer flying environment. For the pilots and for the passengers.
I've dealt with them as well. The conspiracy posts seen here are just ignorant nonsense.
 
“FedEx expects to incur $175 million in extra costs to overcome lost capacity from the mandatory grounding of its MD-11 air cargo fleet during the peak shipping season and now anticipates the flying prohibition will be lifted sometime in the spring, Chief Financial Officer John Dietrich said Thursday.

That would be by May 31.

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fedex-anticipates-md-11-aircraft-return-in-spring-period

Seems to be an ambitious timeframe for that to come to fruition by May 31 when, as is mentioned later in the article, the FAA has yet to issue instructions to airlines on how to carry out inspections.

Wondering if this is FedEx spinning a narrative in order to assuage investors’ fears.

Their CEO, Raj Subramanian, isn’t thought of particularly highly from what I’ve heard from friends in Memphis who worked there.
 
Last edited:
  • Helpful
Reactions: GON
“FedEx expects to incur $175 million in extra costs to overcome lost capacity from the mandatory grounding of its MD-11 air cargo fleet during the peak shipping season and now anticipates the flying prohibition will be lifted sometime in the spring, Chief Financial Officer John Dietrich said Thursday.

That would be by May 31.

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fedex-anticipates-md-11-aircraft-return-in-spring-period

Seems to be an ambitious timeframe for that to come to fruition by May 31 when, as is mentioned later in the article, the FAA has yet to issue instructions to airlines on how to carry out inspections.

Wondering if this is FedEx spinning a narrative in order to assuage investors’ fears.

Their CEO, Raj Subramanian, isn’t thought of particularly highly from what I’ve heard from friends in Memphis who worked there.
Wonder how FEDEX MD-11 flight crews feel about the return of the aircraft?
 
If I were a pilot on this fleet at either Fedex or UPS, I might wonder what other gremlins lurk in this aging and now fairly rare aircraft type.
To be very honest, I would either bid off the airplane, or I might find myself, *cough* *cough*, with an illness and unfit to fly for a while.

Personally, I would not trust the airplane, no matter what the good folks in maintenance or at the FAA told me.

Trust, once lost, is very hard to regain.
 
Last edited:
To be very honest, I would either bid off the airplane, or I might find myself, *cough* *cough*, with an illness and unfit to fly for a while.

Personally, I would not trust the airplane, not matter what the good folks in maintenance or at the FAA told me.

Trust, once lost, is very hard to regain.
MD11 is past it’s time - I don’t say that as a pilot - I say that as a 34 year international traveler who has charter PAX and airfreight responsibilities as part of a management job …
 
UPS has 30 747-8F aircraft currently along with a number of -400s.
I know - F outsold the i … but LH lands almost even split at 39 between i/F …
IMO - with the LH CEO proudly committed at seeing 748 to the 2030’s - and by far the risk manager on high seat value passengers - they must be second only to Boeing/GE with S&K of that airframe …
 
I know - F outsold the i … but LH lands almost even split at 39 between i/F …
IMO - with the LH CEO proudly committed at seeing 748 to the 2030’s - and by far the risk manager on high seat value passengers - they must be second only to Boeing/GE with S&K of that airframe …
Well, Lufty does do a good business as an MRO provider and the 747-8i is very nice in biz.
 
“Investigators have pinpointed the exact part that failed in the fiery Louisville crash of a UPS cargo flight in November, killing 15 in all.


The rare investigative update issued Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board says a 3-inch-wide metal housing around a bearing — central to the mount that kept the left engine attached to the MD-11F’s wing — showed signs of existing metal fatigue and cracking. Investigators identified the larger assembly as a problem early in the investigation.”

https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Documents/DCA26MA024 Investigative Update.pdf
 
Interesting that these #2 engine readings were characterized as “minor perturbations”.

IMG_7656.webp
 
Back
Top Bottom