FAA orders all planes like the one that crashed in Louisville to be grounded
The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered all planes like the one that crashed in Louisville on Tuesday to stop flying.
The FAA issued an “emergency airworthiness directive” regarding the MD-11 and MD-11F aircraft Saturday that “prohibits further flight until the airplane is inspected and all applicable corrective actions are performed.”
“This emergency AD was prompted by an accident where the left-hand engine and pylon detached from the airplane during takeoff,” the FAA said. “The cause of the detachment is currently under investigation. This condition could result in loss of continued safe flight and landing.
“The FAA is issuing this AD because the agency has determined the unsafe condition is likely to exist or develop in other products of the same type design.”
The FAA said it considers the order issued Saturday an interim action, and “further rulemaking” could follow.
UPS announced late Friday that it had decided to temporarily and immediately ground its MD-11s “out of an abundance of caution and in the interest of safety,” based “on the recommendation of the aircraft manufacturer.”
MD-11s make up about 9% of UPS Airlines’ fleet.
“Nothing is more important to us than the safety of our employees and the communities we serve,” UPS said in a statement. “Contingency plans are in place to ensure we can continue to deliver the reliable service our customers around the world count on.”
FedEx had also made the decision to ground its fleet of MD-11s, the New York Times reported.
Boeing, which merged with the aircraft manufacturer, McDonnell Douglas, in 1997, issued a statement Friday saying it was asking the companies that fly MD-11s to ground them.
“With safety as our top priority, we recommended to the three operators of the MD-11 Freighter that they suspend flight operations while additional engineering analysis is performed,” Boeing said. “This recommendation was made in an abundance of caution, and we will continue coordinating with the FAA on this matter.”
Western Global Airlines also operates MD-11s.
The MD-11 that crashed near Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville at about 5:15 p.m. Tuesday was bound for Honolulu, Hawaii, when one of its engines detached. All three crew members on board and at least 11 people on the ground died.
The NTSB is continuing to investigate the crash.
Accident history indicates that since 1993, MD-11s have been involved in 11 incidents that resulted in 244 deaths. While mechanical or electrical problems were the cause of some of those incidents, others were a result of pilot error or weather conditions.
They are the largest three-engine, wide-body airliners in the world.
MD-11s are no longer being manufactured and haven’t been used for passenger service since 2014.
This story was originally published November 8, 2025 at 2:17 PM.
