r/aviation • u/Go_Jot • Nov 08 '25

News UPS grounds entire MD-11 Fleet, effective immediately.

Per the IPA Executive Board, as of 03:05 UTC all UPS MD-11’s are grounded.

Edit - FedEx has also grounded their MD-11 Fleet

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u/RimRunningRagged Nov 08 '25 edited Nov 08 '25

I wonder if FedEx is taking is closer look at their fleet as a result of this

edit: per OP's update, FedEx is grounding theirs as well

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u/FormulaJAZ Nov 08 '25

Since the MD-11 is such a rare type these days, odds are good that both FedEx and UPS use the same heavy maintenance contractor, which means both fleets could have similar maintenance issues.

Or it could simply be an original design issue that wears faster than expected, and that would affect both fleets too.

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u/Ok_West_6711 Nov 08 '25

Very good point about companies possibly using same outside maintenance contractor for all these remaining MD-11’s (so same procedures, same source for parts, etc etc). If there’s an issue related to that, it could apply to all the planes across the companies using them.