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NTSB Focuses on Maintenance Procedures on First Day of UPS Crash Hearing

Investigators zero in on spherical bearing that allegedly weakened an engine pylon.

Wednesday, May 20, 2026 at 10:21 AM ET

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UPS MD-11 freighter [Credit: Jim Allen/FreightWaves]

Key Takeaways:

The NTSB is conducting a hearing on the fatal November 4, 2025, crash of UPS Flight 2976, a Boeing MD-11F, which occurred on takeoff after the No. 1 engine separated, killing all three crew members and 11 people on the ground.
The hearing is scrutinizing aircraft maintenance procedures and protocols, with a specific focus on a "spherical bearing" part whose alleged failure led to the engine pylon weakening and separation.
Boeing and UPS reportedly knew about issues with these spherical bearings fracturing and migrating as early as 2008, but did not classify the design as a safety concern requiring a mandatory airworthiness directive (AD).
Following the accident, the global MD-11 fleet was temporarily grounded for inspections, which revealed cracks in engine attachment pylons, leading UPS to eventually retire its MD-11 fleet.

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Maintenance procedures and protocols took center stage on day one of the National Transportation Safety Board’s hearing on the fatal crash of UPS Flight 2976.

The two-day hearing in Washington, D.C., is an information-gathering exercise, with Boeing, UPS, ST Engineering, Independent Pilots Association, Teamsters Airline Division, GE Aerospace, Collins Aerospace, and the FAA present to answer questions about procedures and policies for aircraft maintenance.

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.