Boeing has asked delivery companies FedEx, UPS and Western Global Cargo to suspend flights with the Boeing MD-11 and MD-11F aircraft.
This action was taken after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (AD 2025-23-51) for these models on Saturday (8) due to the accident involving UPS Flight 2976, which occurred last Tuesday (4).
According to the Federal Aviation Administration statement, the accident resulted from the separation of the left engine and its pylon during takeoff at Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville (USA). Nine people died in the accident.
The cause of the failure is still under investigation. The federal agency stressed that this situation “could lead to the loss of safe flight and landing capabilities,” which is why it ordered the immediate inspection of the aircraft and the implementation of all applicable corrective measures before any new flight.
The agency classified the measure as temporary, and may adopt new rules once the technical investigation progresses. The FAA justified immediate adoption of the guidance without public consultation based on the seriousness and seriousness of the situation, stating that the risk to aviation safety “makes it impractical to wait for the normal comment period.”
Boeing, which is responsible for supporting operators and regulators, issued a statement in which it said it recommended FedEx, UPS and Western Global Cargo “to suspend operations of the MD-11 freighter pending additional engineering analysis.”
The decision came after UPS and FedEx announced, on Thursday (7), the temporary closure of their MD-11F freight fleets, in response to the incident. Today there are 54 MD-11 aircraft in commercial operation around the world, distributed among the three American shipping companies.
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