Emergency airworthiness directive impacts 57 MD-11F freighters (FedEx, UPS, Western Global), potentially leading to capacity shortfalls.
Due to the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) decision to ground all MD-11Fs following last week’s deadly crash, air cargo rates are predicted to increase over the next few days.
Global airfreight rates increased by 2% last week compared to the previous week and are presently 3.7% lower than they were a year ago, according to a weekly market analysis from freight rate supplier TAC Index. Given that the business is in the midst of its peak season, when prices typically climb, the weekly increase was deemed “unexceptional.”
In the days and weeks that follow the FAA’s decision to ground MD-11Fs, rates are anticipated to increase.
TAC’s latest briefing noted that while this situation was initially considered unremarkable for the onset of the busiest period in the market, this changed following the fatal collision of a UPS cargo plane in Louisville. That incident subsequently triggered the grounding of all MD-11 cargo aircraft operated by UPS, FedEx, and Western Global.
“Sources indicate that this could have a major impact on capacity and rates in the coming days, especially on transpacific routes, where the majority of MD-11 freighters operate.”
In a recent LinkedIn post, Max Kingsley-Jones, head of advice at Cirium Ascend Consultancy, stated that according to Cirium statistics, there are 57 MD-11Fs operating with FedEx, UPS, and Western Global Airlines as of November 5. Western Global has four MD-11Fs, UPS has twenty-six, and FedEx has twenty-seven. There are 51 more of this type in storage.
According to FlightRadar24 data, the model is primarily applied to domestic US operations. Four of the UPS MD-11F aircraft were primarily used for domestic flights with the occasional stop in Canada, four had not flown within the previous seven days, and eighteen had solely flown domestic US services.
Thirteen of FedEx’s aircraft have only flown domestic US flights in the last seven days; five more have flown both domestic and international flights, including to Stansted, Osaka, and Guangzhou; four have only flown international flights to Seoul, Guangzhou, Taipei, Tokyo, Singapore, and Osaka; and one has not flown in the last seven days.
The four MD-11Fs operated by Western Global are mostly utilised for international flights to places like Ostend, Seoul, Hong Kong, Rota, and Beersheba. Even though MD-11Fs are mostly used for domestic US operations, a sizable portion of their flights is carried out abroad.
Additionally, in order to compensate for the US domestic shortfall, capacity could need to be drawn from overseas, which could have consequences elsewhere.
The FAA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (AD) over the weekend directing MD-11 freighter owners and operators to check their aircraft for defects before takeoff. This emergency AD, 2025-23-51, was caused by a UPS MD-11F that crashed fatally on November 4 after taking off from Louisville, USA. Investigations are currently underway into the event, which saw the left-hand engine and pylon separating from the aircraft after takeoff.
SOURCE – AIR CARGO
