UPS axes MD-11F fleet

UPS’ MD-11Fs will never return to the air for revenue service with the integrator after the company decided in the fourth quarter to write off its entire contingent of twenty-six units. Although UPS had planned to retire its MD-11F fleet over the next several years, the company felt confident in accelerating that process because it met demand during the recent peak season without relying on MD-11F capacity, UPS told Cargo Facts . [caption id="attachment_57295142" align="aligncenter" width="751"] UPS has twenty-six MD-11Fs grounded at sixteen airports in North America. (Photo/Cargo Facts)[/caption] UPS delivered on-time performance of 97.2% for December 2025 without MD-11s, UPS said. The move to retire the type and accelerate fleet modernization resulted in a non-cash, after-tax charge of $137 million, UPS said in its Q4 results, released today. Grounded aircraft UPS’ twenty-six MD-11Fs have been grounded at sixteen locations across North America since Nov. 7, 2025, following the fatal Nov. 4 crash of the 1991-vintage unit 48417 . UPS is still determining the disposition of the MD-11Fs, it told Cargo Facts . The left CF6 and pylon detached from the wing of unit 48417 as it was taking off from Louisville, Ky. (SDF), to Honolulu (HNL). The MD-11F crashed and killed fourteen people, including all three crew members onboard. The FAA issued an emergency airworthiness directive on Nov. 8, 2025, grounding all MD-11s and mandating inspections and corrective actions before they can fly again. In a Nov. 20 preliminary report on the crash, the NTSB said there were fatigue cracks on the left pylon’s aft mount lugs. FedEx, Western Global aircraft In addition to UPS, FedEx had twenty-eight MD-11Fs in service before the grounding and Western Global Airlines had five. FedEx reported a $25 million hit from the grounding of its MD-11 fleet for its most recent quarter ended Nov. 30, 2025. The company hopes to return the freighters to service beginning around March, Chief Financial Officer John Dietrich said on a Dec. 18, 2025, earnings call. FedEx last year extended the retirement of its MD-11Fs to fiscal 2032 from fiscal 2028. Western Global Airlines in late November 2025 furloughed about seventy MD-11F pilots , but Cargo Facts understands many have since found employment elsewhere. Replacements UPS has eighteen 767-300Fs on order from Boeing that it expects to receive over the next fifteen months, including fifteen in 2026, Chief Financial Officer Brian Dykes said on today’s earnings call. As these new freighters are delivered, UPS will scale back outsourcing capacity to other carriers, he said. Since the grounding, UPS has engaged a range of ACMI providers to fly their 747, 767, 757, A321 and 737 freighters on its behalf, including: 7Air ; Global Crossing Airlines; Kalitta Charters II; Amerijet ; ABX Air; Air Transport International; and Cargojet . Peak season is in full swing at @UPS Worldport. Get a close-up look at a UPS MD-11 as it heads to the taxiway at @FlyLouisville . Our @UPSers are hard at work helping Santa this holiday season! ✈️🎅🎁 #avgeek #aviation #louisvilleky pic.twitter.com/i6udiRjyoD

— UPS Airlines (@UPSAirlines) December 21, 2022 (Courtesy/UPS Airlines) MD-11 pilots Along with normal attrition due to retirements, UPS will reassign MD-11F pilots to other aircraft types, and staffing levels will remain stable to support operational needs, it told Cargo Facts . MD-11 crew members will move to other fleets through system bids as soon as practical, but they will continue to be pay-protected, Brian Gaudet, director of public affairs at the Independent Pilots Association, representing more than 3,400 UPS pilots, told Cargo Facts. Cargo Facts will present four invaluable events for airfreight professionals in the first half of 2026, starting with Cargo Facts LATAM, on Feb. 10-12. To see the agendas and register for the events, visit CargoFactsEvents.com .

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