UPS on Thursday identified three crew members who died aboard a cargo plane that crashed shortly after taking off in Louisville, Kentucky, earlier in the week — killing at least 13 people in total.
"Words can’t express the sorrow we feel over the heartbreaking Flight 2976 accident," UPS Executive Vice President Nando Cesarone said in a statement. "It’s with great sorrow that we share the names of the UPS pilots on board UPS Flight 2976. Captain Richard Wartenberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, and International Relief Officer Captain Dana Diamond were operating the flight."
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According to the Federal Aviation Administration, UPS Flight 2976 went down Tuesday around 5:15 p.m. local time after departing the airport. The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 was headed to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu when it crashed. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said two businesses were hit when the plane crashed.
The FAA said both the agency and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. Black boxes from the plane have been recovered, federal investigators said on Wednesday.
NTSB Member J. Todd Inman said that video reviewed by investigators shows a large fire on the left side of the aircraft and the plane’s left engine detaching from the wing. He added that the plane still managed to gain enough altitude to clear a fence at the end of the runway before crashing into two businesses just beyond airport property and sparking a fire that stretched roughly half a mile.
"We need to not only take drone coverage and video coverage of where every piece of this evidence is, but then we need to recover it and tag it, and those will give us even more pieces of information," Inman said.
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Louisville is home to UPS's largest package handling facility, with around 300 flights a day leaving from the hub.
"Our hearts go out to every UPSer who has been impacted and all in our Louisville community — supporting you and ensuring you receive the care and resources you need is our priority," Cesarone said. "This continues to be an incredibly sad time for our entire UPS family, and as our CEO, Carol Tomé reminded us: 'United, we are strong.' We extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of our colleagues, and to the loved ones of those in the Louisville community."
