Plane crash in the USA. Death of crew members, casualties on the ground

The disaster occurred on Tuesday at 5:15 p.m. local time. A UPS McDonnell Douglas MD-11 crashed shortly after takeoff and exploded, causing extensive damage to surrounding buildings in an industrial area beyond the runway. The victims include three crew members and four people on the ground.

A video from the scene of the accident recorded fire visible on the wing of the plane during take-off. After hitting the ground, the machine exploded. Reuters reports that the three-engine plane was refueled for the 8.5-hour flight to Honolulu.

UPS plane crash. 11 people were injured

US aviation safety expert and pilot John Cox said investigators would have to look into why the plane with three engines failed to fly after the first one caught fire. “It’s too big a fire to be a normal, typical engine fire,” Cox said. “This plane should have been able to fly on two engines. So now we have to investigate what caused it to be unable to,” he added.

The crash also caused “secondary explosions” at a petroleum recycling plant at the crash site, the Louisville fire chief said. He added that some of the explosion-like sounds actually came from safety valves that had released pressure. “It may sound scary, but it means the valve worked,” he said.

The largest UPS transhipment airport

The Louisville airport where UPS Worldport is located is a global air cargo hub and the company’s largest parcel transhipment facility in the world. After the accident, the remains of the plane were scattered on two runways.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are investigating the crash.