Overview
- On Nov. 4, 2025, UPS Flight 2976 lost its left engine and pylon during takeoff from Louisville and crashed into nearby businesses, killing 15 people.
- The NTSB released airport surveillance video and an animation during May 19–20 hearings that show the engine and pylon detaching at rotation and the aircraft rising only about 30 feet before impact.
- Investigators reported fatigue cracks in the pylon’s spherical bearing race that shifted load to the aft mount lugs, which fractured and allowed the engine to separate.
- Documents shown at the hearing confirm Boeing logged similar bearing problems years earlier and issued non‑mandatory service guidance rather than a compulsory FAA airworthiness directive.
- After the crash the FAA approved Boeing’s inspection and repair protocol, FedEx resumed some MD-11 flights, UPS retired its MD-11 fleet, and civil lawsuits and continued NTSB oversight are now proceeding.