The number of lives lost from the transport jet that caught fire and plummeted has climbed to 13, per official reports.
Official's Remarks
Traveling to the Teamsters’ vigil, I was informed of a additional fatality that died as a outcome of the aircraft accident,” wrote the city mayor in a public communication. “My prayers is with the families, companions and peers of all who were killed in this recently occurred calamity. We will endure this collectively.”
Casualties Identified
An announcement from the company identified the officers aboard the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 as Captain Richard Wartenberg, Co-pilot Lee Truitt, and International Relief Officer Dana Diamond.
“Our sympathies go out to each UPSer who has been affected and everyone in our Louisville area – supporting you and making sure you receive the support and assistance you need is our priority,” the organization’s statement read.
Inquiry Details
Federal investigators announced that the UPS cargo plane’s port side wing caught fire and an power plant fell off shortly after liftoff from the airfield, leading to the jet to plummet and explode into a fireball.
The NTSB announced it is investigating the plane’s upkeep logs, which was in Texas for fixes weeks before the crash.
Aviation records indicated the aircraft was on the ground in San Antonio, Texas from early September to 18 October.
“We are cognizant that this aircraft was present in the facility,” remarked an NTSB member on the following day, without a exact time frame. “We will look at each aspect of repairs that was completed, from the Texas time, all the way to the time of the journey.”
Findings of Vital Evidence
The cockpit voice recorder and data recorder were retrieved, and the power plant was found on the airfield.
The recorders – called flight recorders – were constructed to endure accident forces and extreme temperatures from fires, and they appeared to be intact when found within the crash debris. Investigators will examining data from the devices.
Aircraft’s last recorded information showed an elevation of 475 feet and a velocity of 210 mph ahead of the impact.
Maintenance History
Per aviation authority documents from that date, a fracture on a structural piece inside the fuel container needed maintenance.
The company ST Engineering, which indicated it offers structural repairs for UPS’s aircraft and operates a repair facility in that city, chose not to speak, but said it would work closely when relevant authorities approached it.
Activities Continue
In the meantime, UPS Worldport services continued that evening with its Next Day Air or nighttime operation, spokesperson Jim Mayer said. All three tarmacs at the aviation hub were also reopened.
The distribution hub in the city is the company’s largest. The center hires in excess of a large number of workers in the region, handles three hundred aircraft each day and organizes over 400,000 packages per hour.
Community Reaction
A gathering was conducted on the late afternoon of that date by the area labor union, which supports employees at the airfield, the organization’s primary air cargo hub.
The union chapter, which represents staff, started the memorial with a moment of silence at the evening hour, the approximate time of the incident before.
“This incident was so unexpected, so unforeseen,” the leader told the crowd of 200. “No one had a moment to part to each of those who we have lost.”
