The tally of victims resulting from the transport jet which ignited and crashed has now climbed to 13, as confirmed by official reports.
Official's Statement
While en route to the Workers’ memorial service, I learned of a 13th person that passed away as a result of the UPS flight 2976 accident,” stated the city mayor in a online message. “My heart are with the loved ones, associates and peers of all who were killed in this recent calamity. We will get through this together.”
Victims Identified
A statement from UPS listed the officers on board the aircraft as Captain Richard Wartenberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, and Relief Captain Dana Diamond.
“Our thoughts reach out to every employee who has been touched and everyone in our Louisville region – helping you and ensuring you obtain the care and assistance you need is our main concern,” the company’s statement expressed.
Investigation Findings
National officials announced that the jet’s wing ignited and an motor separated soon after takeoff from the airfield, leading to the plane to plummet and explode into a inferno.
The National Transportation Safety Board stated it is investigating the plane’s maintenance history, that was in the state for repairs a period prior to the accident.
Aviation information indicated the aircraft was on the runway in San Antonio, Texas from the start of last month to 18 October.
“We are cognizant that this jet was located in that city,” stated an NTSB member on Thursday, without a specific time frame. “We will look at each aspect of maintenance that was performed, from the Texas period, all the way to the day of the flight.”
Retrieval of Vital Items
The audio device and flight data recorder were recovered, and the motor was discovered on the tarmac.
The units – called flight recorders – were designed to survive crash impacts and severe temperatures from fires, and they looked to be in one piece when found within the remains. Authorities will examining data from the black boxes.
Jet’s last data recordings displayed an altitude of that level and a rate of 210 miles per hour before the impact.
Maintenance Background
According to Federal Aviation Administration documents from last month, a fracture on a part inside the tank area required fixes.
Headquartered in Singapore ST Engineering, which indicated it offers structural repairs for UPS’s aircraft and manages a repair facility in San Antonio, refused to provide remarks, but said it would cooperate fully when investigators contacted it.
Services Resume
In the meantime, UPS Worldport activities resumed Wednesday night with its express also known as night sort procedure, representative a representative confirmed. The three landing strips at the airport were also back in operation.
The UPS package handling facility in Louisville is the company’s largest. The center employs in excess of twenty thousand people in the region, processes three hundred flights per day and organizes over a huge volume of parcels each hour.
Public Reaction
A gathering was organized on the late afternoon of that date by the local labor union, which supports staff at the airfield, the company’s biggest shipping facility.
Teamsters Local 89, which represents staff, began the vigil with a quiet tribute at the evening hour, the estimated time of the crash two days earlier.
“This incident was so unexpected, so unforeseen,” the mayor told the group of 200. “No one had a chance to part to each of those who we have lost.”
