MD-11 Cargo Jets Face ‘Extended Grounding’ for Inspections

Western Global Airlines announces pilot furloughs for its fleet of the planes.

Eric Kulisch

Tuesday, November 25, 2025 at 11:30 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

An MD-11 freighter aircraft operated by Western Global Airlines makes its final approach to Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Oct. 26, 2020. [Credit: Shutterstock/Carlos Yudica]

Key Takeaways:

MD-11 cargo jets face an extended grounding for complex inspections and repairs following a fatal crash, leading to a significant shortage of widebody capacity for FedEx, UPS, and Western Global Airlines during peak shipping season.
Western Global Airlines, being heavily reliant on MD-11s, has been forced to indefinitely furlough approximately 75 pilots due to the prolonged grounding, citing company survival as the reason.
The grounding stems from a fatal UPS MD-11 crash linked to fatigue cracks in an engine attachment component, prompting FedEx and UPS to implement contingency plans like consolidating flights and contracting smaller aircraft from partner airlines.

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Inspections and potential repairs for MD–11 cargo jets under a no-fly ban following this month’s fatal crash of a UPS freighter could take much longer than some originally expected, leaving FedEx, UPS and Western Global Airlines with a shortage of widebody capacity during the peak shipping season.

Western Global Airlines on Friday informed all MD-11 pilots that they have been furloughed indefinitely, effective on November 22, because of the longer time horizon for completing safety checks mandated by the FAA, according to an internal letter from Tom Romnios, vice president of human resources. The letter was posted on LinkedIn by Nik Fialka, a professional pilot who hosts the “Ready 4 Pushback” podcast.