American Airways Flight 191 and UPS Flight 2976 weren’t an identical accidents, however their similarities have drawn severe consideration from investigators and aviation security consultants.
On 25 Could 1979, American Airways Flight 191 started what ought to have been a routine mid-afternoon departure from Chicago O’Hare Worldwide Airport (ORD).
The plane, a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 sure for Los Angeles Worldwide (LAX), was carrying 258 passengers and 13 crew members. Because it accelerated down Runway 32R and rotated into the air, the unthinkable occurred. The left engine and pylon broke away from the wing, ripping off a piece of the vanguard because it separated. The engine fell onto the runway whereas the plane continued climbing, briefly reaching about 325 ft.
What adopted occurred in seconds.
With the engine gone, the left wing’s modern slats retracted inconsistently. That left wing stalled with out warning, and the DC-10 rolled sharply to the left (its most financial institution was recorded as 112º). Simply 31 seconds after takeoff, it crashed into an open discipline close to a trailer park, roughly 4,600 ft from the runway. All 271 individuals aboard had been killed, together with two individuals on the bottom.
The NTSB later decided that the catastrophe was prompted on account of an asymmetrical stall and the ensuing roll, brought on by the uncommanded retraction of the left wing’s outboard modern slats. The failure was traced again to maintenance-induced harm that led to the separation of the No. 1 engine and pylon meeting.
Investigators discovered that American Airways’ upkeep process, which included the usage of a forklift to assist the engine and pylon throughout removing and reinstallation, had prompted hidden structural harm to the pylon’s higher flange. Within the aftermath, the FAA grounded the DC-10 fleet for 37 days whereas inspections and repairs had been carried out.
Greater than 4 many years later, Flight 191 stays the deadliest single-aircraft crash in United States historical past.
Aviation security skilled Steve Forness, managing director of Air Flight Technical, later pointed to the design vulnerability uncovered that day. In each the DC-10 crash and the later UPS accident, he famous, the engine appeared to rotate across the ahead bulkhead earlier than leaving the wing fully.
A Repute the DC-10 By no means Totally Recovered From
The crash did greater than destroy one plane. It severely (and completely) broken the DC-10’s fame.
Within the days that adopted, the FAA briefly revoked the plane’s kind certificates, grounding all US-registered DC-10s and banning international DC-10s from American airspace. Even after fixes had been made to the slats, warning methods, and energy provides, public confidence by no means absolutely returned.
Following Flight 191, the DC-10 turned an emblem of danger for the flying public – whether or not that fame was fully honest or not. Gross sales suffered. McDonnell Douglas misplaced roughly $200 million in market worth, and manufacturing of the DC-10 resulted in 1989 after 386 plane had been constructed.
Aviation has all the time had plane that had been technically improved after tragedy. However public notion may be more durable to restore than steel.
Louisville: UPS Flight 2976
On 4 November 2025, one other McDonnell Douglas trijet was rolling down a runway when historical past appeared to echo in a chilling means.
UPS Airways Flight 2976, an MD-11F freighter, was departing Louisville Muhammad Ali Worldwide Airport (SDF) for Honolulu (HNL). The plane had been inbuilt 1991 and had accrued almost 93,000 flight hours and greater than 21,000 cycles. Three crew members had been on board.
Shortly after V1 on Runway 17R, the left engine and pylon separated from the plane.
The MD-11 climbed solely about 30 ft earlier than dropping management. It crashed into an industrial space south of the airport, putting a number of buildings and erupting in flames. All three crew members had been killed, together with 12 individuals on the bottom. A kind of victims died from accidents 51 days later, bringing the ultimate loss of life toll to fifteen. One other 23 individuals on the bottom had been injured.
It was the deadliest accident in UPS Airways historical past.
The NTSB’s preliminary report and later hearings recognized fatigue cracks within the left pylon’s aft mount, significantly within the aft and ahead lugs of the spherical bearing meeting. Investigators discovered that steel fatigue and overstress led to the failure.
The similarities to American Airways Flight 191 had been inconceivable to disregard. Each plane got here from the identical McDonnell Douglas wide-body trijet lineage. Each misplaced the left No. 1 engine and pylon throughout takeoff. Each plane turned uncontrollable virtually instantly. Each crashes resulted in hearth, fatalities, and lack of life on the bottom.
In response, the FAA briefly grounded the MD-11 fleet. This represented a reasonably good portion of the UPS fleet (about 9% of its whole fleet). Within the weeks following Flight 2976, the airline introduced the accelerated retirement of its remaining MD-11s, finishing the phaseout in early 2026.
Former NTSB main accident investigator Stephen Carbone raised considerations about oversight of heavy upkeep, warning that airways can lose management when main upkeep work is outsourced. He pointed to the necessity for stronger FAA and airline oversight of third-party upkeep, restore, and overhaul suppliers.
The Parallels, the Variations, and the Lesson
The similarities between American Airways Flight 191 and UPS Flight 2976 are putting, however the accidents weren’t an identical.
The 1979 crash occurred due to upkeep harm throughout engine removing and reinstallation. The 2025 crash, based mostly on the NTSB’s findings to date, was brought on by long-term steel fatigue in a key bearing meeting. One accident was attributable to a dangerous upkeep process. The opposite concerned an outdated structural half that failed after a few years of use.
Nonetheless, each accidents level to the identical uncomfortable fact: the engine-pylon construction on these plane was a essential space the place failure might rapidly change into catastrophic.
Throughout NTSB hearings, FAA technical skilled Dr. Melanie Violette defined that the severity of a bearing failure had been misunderstood many years earlier. It was not believed, on the time, to be essential to the plane’s integrity or security.
That element could change into one of the necessary classes from Louisville.
Business aviation is vastly safer at this time than it was in 1979. Upkeep practices, inspection expertise, crew coaching, certification requirements, and oversight have all improved dramatically. However Flight 2976 reveals that even mature plane designs can nonetheless maintain hidden dangers, particularly as fleets age and airframes stay in demanding cargo service lengthy after their passenger careers have ended.
The DC-10 and MD-11 are actually largely gone from the skies, with just a few exceptions nonetheless flying. However the classes from Chicago and Louisville will seemingly stay a part of the protection dialog for years to return.
Business aviation is far safer now than in 1979, however Flight 2976 confirmed how rapidly an older, confirmed design can change into harmful if a hidden structural drawback is missed. That is very true for cargo planes, which frequently proceed flying lengthy after their passenger service ends and endure many demanding flight cycles.
The DC-10 and MD-11 are principally gone from common service, however the points raised by the Chicago and Louisville crashes is not going to be forgotten quickly. Now, investigators, airways, regulators, and upkeep groups are centered on discovering what was missed, understanding why, and ensuring this type of failure doesn’t occur once more.
The ultimate NTSB report for Flight 2976 will probably be launched this November.
