UPS, FedEx ground MD-11 planes after Kentucky crash

UPS and FedEx, two of the world’s largest cargo airlines, said late Friday that they had grounded their MD-11 planes, days after one of the planes was involved in a deadly crash in Kentucky.

- FRANCESCA REGALADO QASIM NAUMAN

Both carriers said they had taken the step to immediately ground their MD-11s on the recommendation of the plane’s manufacturer. The MD-11 was originally produced by McDonnell Douglas, which was bought by Boeing in the 1990s.

"With safety as our top priority, we recommended to the three operators of the MD-11 Freighter that they suspend flight operations while additional engineering analysis is performed," Boeing said in a statement early Saturday.

A UPS MD-11 crashed last Tuesday just after taking off from Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky, killing all three pilots on board and 11 people on the ground.