Investigators look into ‘repeating bell’ heard during takeoff of UPS cargo plane that crashed
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A UPS cargo plane was nearly taking off when a bell rang in the cockpit. For the next 25 seconds, the bell rang and the pilots tried to control the plane, which had barely taken off from the runway, its left wing on fire and its engine missing. crashed to the ground with a magnificent fireballthe inspector general said Friday.
The company’s crash at UPS Worldport on Tuesday Global aviation hub in Louisville, Kentucky, Killed 14 people, including three pilots On MD-11 bound for Honolulu.
Todd Inman, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, said the cockpit voice recorder recorded the bell ringing about 37 seconds after the crew called for takeoff thrust. There are different types of alarms with different meanings, he said, and investigators haven’t determined why the bell was ringing, even though they know the left wing was on fire and the engine on that side was disabled.
Inman said it will be months before the transcript of the cockpit recording is made public as part of the investigative process.
Jeff Guzzetti, a former federal accident investigator, said the bell likely signaled an engine fire.
“This happened at a point in the takeoff where they probably exceeded their decision speed to abort the takeoff,” Guzzetti told The Associated Press after Inman’s news conference. “They were probably past their critical decision-making speed to stay on the runway and stop safely… They will need to thoroughly explore the options the crew may or may not have had.”
Investigators look to video for clues
Dramatic video He caught the plane crashing into workplaces and exploding into a fireball. Footage from phones, cars and security cameras gave investigators evidence of what was happening from many different angles.
The NTSB said Friday that preliminary data on the plane’s altitude showed it reached an altitude of only about 100 feet, not 475 feet. Inman said it reached speeds of 210 miles (340 km) per hour before crashing just outside the airport.
The main component of the left engine and parts of the fan blades were recovered from the airport. Inman said UPS stated that no maintenance work was being done immediately before the flight. He said investigators will look at the video to see if anything was done around the MD-11 plane in the previous days.
UPS package handling facility in Louisville the company’s biggest. The hub employs more than 20,000 people in the region, operates 300 flights a day and sorts more than 400,000 packages per hour.
UPS World Port operations have resumed It worked with Next Day Air, or night blizzard operation, on Wednesday night, spokesman Jim Mayer said.
Lawsuit alleges negligence by UPS and others
The lawsuit regarding the accident has already started. A federal lawsuit was filed Thursday against UPS by an automotive repair shop that was destroyed in the crash and by a resident who was treated at the hospital after smoke inhalation.
The manufacturer of the aircraft and its engine was also named in the lawsuit, which alleged that the defendants “negligently violated their duties of reasonable care and prevention of unreasonable damage.” He is seeking unspecified damages.
The companies named as defendants did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Friday. ___
Mattise reported from Nashville. AP writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.
