Plumes of smoke rise from the area of a UPS cargo plane crash at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A UPS cargo plane’s left wing caught fire and an engine fell off just before it crashed and exploded after takeoff in Kentucky, a federal official said Wednesday, offering the first investigative details about a disaster that killed at least 12 people, including a child.
Finding survivors seemed unlikely as first responders searched the charred area of the crash at UPS Worldport, the company’s global aviation hub in Louisville, Gov. Andy Beshear said. The inferno consumed the enormous aircraft and spread to nearby businesses.
After being cleared for takeoff, a large fire developed in the left wing, said Todd Inman, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation. The NTSB will now try to determine what caused the fire and why the engine fell off. It will likely take investigators more than a year to answer those questions.
