The plane cleared a fence at the end of the runway before colliding with multiple structures, officials said

Fire and smoke mark where a UPS cargo plane crashed near Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport on November 04, 2025 in Louisville, Kentucky. The fully fueled plane crashed shortly after takeoff with a shelter-in-place order issued for within 5 miles of the airport.Credit : Stephen Cohen/Getty

New details are emerging about the fiery UPS plane crash at Kentucky’s Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport that killed at least 11 people.

The MD-11-F plane was traveling from Louisville to Honolulu when it crashed at about 5:15 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Nov. 4, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) member Todd Inman said at a press conference on Wednesday, Nov. 5.

A preliminary investigation revealed three people were onboard the plane when “a large plume of fire” erupted from the area of the left wing during the “takeoff roll,” Inman said.

The plane then “lifted off and gained enough altitude to clear the fence at the end of runway 17-R” only to crash into multiple structures “off of the airport property,” he added.

Airport CCTV security footage showed the left engine “detaching from the wing during the takeoff roll,” according to Inman. The engine seen in photos from near the crash site is believed to be from the left side of the plane, he added.

Smoke rises from the site of a UPS cargo plane crash near the UPS Worldport at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville, Kentucky, on November 4, 2025.LEANDRO LOZADA/AFP via Getty

The fire that resulted from the crash was nearly a half mile long, the board member said. The black box inside the plane survived the blaze, he added.

Though it “suffered some heat” from the fire, Inman said officials believed they will be able to get a “good read out” of information from the device. It will be “several days” until they can get into the black box, however.

he NTSB will remain at the crash site for at least a week while they look into what may have caused it, why it happened and how they can prevent it from happening again in the future, Inman said.

Anyone who may have come across debris from the aircraft that crashed is asked to contact the NTSB at [email protected].

An infographic titled “Details of cargo plane crash in Kentucky” created in Ankara, Turkiye on November 5, 2025.Yasin Demirci/Anadolu via Getty

Eleven people died in the crash, Gov. Andy Beshear said in a separate briefing on Wednesday, but he noted that number is expected to increase by the end of the day.

At the NTSB press conference, Inman offered “sincere condolences” to those impacted by the fatal crash.

“It is a tough day for Louisville, for Kentucky,” said Inman, who noted that he hails from the state.

He added, “We know it is tearing at the community, and we are deeply sorry.”