🔗 Share this article

The tally of lives lost from the UPS cargo plane which ignited and plummeted has risen to 13, per official reports.

City Leader's Statement

Traveling to the Union’s candlelight gathering, I received word of a additional fatality that lost their life as a result of the UPS flight 2976 accident,” expressed the local official in a social media post. “My prayers are with the relatives, friends and co-workers of all who were killed in this recently occurred calamity. We will endure this collectively.”

Victims Confirmed

A statement from UPS named the officers aboard the aircraft as Pilot Richard Wartenberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, and Relief Captain Dana Diamond.

“Our hearts reach out to every staff member who has been affected and everyone in our Louisville community – supporting you and guaranteeing you obtain the care and resources you need is our priority,” the company’s statement read.

Investigation Updates

Federal officials disclosed that the jet’s left wing caught fire and an motor separated shortly after liftoff from the aviation hub, causing the plane to plummet and erupt into a blaze.

The safety agency stated it is examining the plane’s service record, which was in Texas for repairs a period before the accident.

Aircraft records indicated the plane was on the runway in that location from the start of last month to 18 October.

“We are knowledgeable that this aircraft was located in San Antonio,” said an investigator on the following day, not giving a exact date range. “We will look at each aspect of maintenance that was performed, including the San Antonio visit, straight to the time of the trip.”

Retrieval of Vital Evidence

The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were retrieved, and the engine was located on the tarmac.

The recorders – known as flight recorders – were constructed to survive collision damage and severe fire from fires, and they seemed to be undamaged when located among the remains. Investigators will reviewing recordings from the black boxes.

The plane’s last recorded information displayed an height of 475 ft and a velocity of 210 miles per hour prior to the crash.

Service Background

Per FAA documents dated 18 September, a fissure on a structural piece within the tank area required fixes.

The company ST Engineering, which said it offers airframe maintenance for the carrier’s aircraft and runs a maintenance center in Texas, refused to comment, but expressed it would work closely when investigators contacted it.

Activities Resume

At the same time, the hub services restarted Wednesday night with its Next Day Air also known as night sort process, spokesperson Jim Mayer confirmed. The three landing strips at the aviation hub were additionally open again.

The distribution hub in this location is the organization’s biggest. The center employs more than 20,000 people in the locality, handles three hundred aircraft per day and sorts more than four hundred thousand parcels an hour.

Community Response

A candlelight vigil was organized on the late afternoon of recently by the local labor union, which represents staff at the aviation hub, the organization’s biggest freight center.

Teamsters Local 89, which supports employees, began the vigil with a period of reflection at the evening hour, the approximate hour of the crash before.

“This tragedy was so abrupt, so unexpected,” the leader spoke to the group of 200. “No one had a chance to part to each of those who we have said farewell to.”