crashes

Nov. 4 (UPI) — At least three died and 11 were injured when a UPS aircraft crashed while taking off from the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport early Tuesday night.

The numbers of dead and injured are expected to grow, the Louisville Courier-Journal reported.

The UPS aircraft crashed while taking off from the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport early Tuesday evening, causing the airport to close temporarily.

UPS Flight 2976 took off shortly after 5 p.m. EST and was bound for Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

The National Transportation Safety Board will be leading the official investigation into the crash and UPS will release additional facts as they become available, the company said in a prepared statement.

The aircraft crashed while attempting to climb and exploded upon impact with the ground, which created a fire that spread about a mile and produced thick plumes of black and gray smoke, WLKY reported.

The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department said the crash has caused injuries, but how many are hurt and the extent of their injuries are not known yet.

The aircraft involved in the crash is a McDonnell Douglas MD-11, which is powered by three Pratt & Whitney PW4460 engines, each of which produces up to 60,000 pounds of thrust, according to the Delta Flight Museum.

The commercial jet has a range of up to 8,460 miles, a wingspan of more than 169 feet and is more than 200 feet long.

The aircraft was fully fueled for its long flight to Honolulu, which contributed to the large fire that spread to a nearby recycling center and other facilities, according to WLKY.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has been notified of the crash and is en route to the airport.

“We are aware of a reported plane crash near Louisville International Airport,” Beshear posted on social media, as reported by ABC News.

“First responders are on-site, and we will share more information as available,” Beshear added. “Please pray for the pilots, crew and everyone affected.”

While the airport is closed, Transportation Security Administration screenings are halted.

Passengers who are scheduled to depart from or arrive at the airport on Tuesday or Wednesday are advised to check on their respective flight statuses.

Update includes the number of dead and injured reported as of 8 p.m. EST.

Oct. 28 (UPI) — A small airplane with 11 people on board crashed during a flight in Kenya early Tuesday with no survivors, Mombasa Air Safari officials announced.

The flight carried eight passengers from Hungary, two from Germany and its Kenyan pilot when it crashed for unknown reasons after taking flight from the coastal city of Diani Beach, the airline said.

“Sadly, there are no survivors,” Mombasa Air said in the statement.

“Our hearts and prayers are with all those affected by this tragic event.”

Diani Beach is located due south of Mombasa on Kenya’s Indian Ocean coast.

The aircraft crashed into a wooded hillside in Kwale County about 25 miles from Diani Beach, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement.

“Government agencies are already on site to establish the cause of the accident and its impact,” the KCAA said.

The KCAA initially reported 12 died in the crash but has since revised that number to 11 to accurately reflect the number of passengers and crew on board.

The Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft crashed at 8:35 a.m. local time while headed to an airstrip in Kwichwa Tembo near the Maasai Mara Natural Reserve, which is about 500 miles northwest of Diani Beach. Authorities initially reported that crash occurred at 5:30 a.m.

The aircraft had lost contact with the Mombasa International Airport control tower 10 minutes into its flight, Ministry of Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir said in a statement.

The aircraft — which local media reported was built in 2007 and deemed reliable — was destroyed by the impact and ensuring fire, Chirchir said.

The pilot did not report to the Diani Beach airport air traffic controllers as required, which caused the flight to go missing for about 30 minutes before the crash site was located, according to Mombasa Air Safari officials.

Witnesses reported hearing a loud crash and found the plane’s wreckage and human remains at the crash site.

The reserve is adjacent to Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park and is renowned for its natural setting and wildlife, including wildebeests.

“The weather here is not very good at the moment,” Kwale County Commissioner Stephen Orinde told the BBC.

“Since early in the morning, it is raining and it is very misty,” he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested that contaminated fuel may have been a factor in the U.S. Navy’s loss of an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter and an F/A-18F Super Hornet in the South China Sea on Sunday. In a very strange chain of events, the two aircraft, both assigned to the supercarrier USS Nimitz, went down within 30 minutes of each other while on separate missions. The crews of the Seahawk and the Super Hornet were both safely retrieved.

“They’re gonna let me know pretty soon,” Trump told reporters while flying aboard Air Force One on Monday. “I think they should be able to find out. It could be bad fuel. I mean, it’s possible it’s bad fuel. Very unusual that that would happen.”

Asked whether he thought “foul play” led to the crashes, Trump said “I don’t think so,” and reiterated his contaminated fuel theory. 

“We don’t believe it was anything nefarious,” a U.S. Navy official told The War Zone.

U.S. Pacific Fleet (PACFLEET), which oversees naval operations in the South China Sea region, declined to comment on Trump’s statements about the crashes and referred us to the White House. We have yet to receive a response and will update this story with any pertinent information provided.

The first of the two mishaps occurred about 2:45 PM local time, according to PACFLEET.

That’s when the Seahawk, assigned to the “Battle Cats” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 73 (HSM-73), “went down in the waters of the South China Sea while conducting routine operations from” the Nimitz, a PACFLEET release stated. “Search and rescue assets assigned to Carrier Strike Group 11 safely recovered all three crew members.”

A half hour later, an F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter assigned to the “Fighting Redcocks” of Strike Fighter Squadron 22 (VFA-22) “also went down in the waters of the South China Sea while conducting routine operations from Nimitz,” PACFLEET announced. “Both crew members successfully ejected and were also safely recovered by search and rescue assets assigned to Carrier Strike Group 11. All personnel involved are safe and in stable condition. The cause of both incidents is currently under investigation.”

While the particular circumstances of the recent mishaps in the South China Sea remain under investigation, fuel contaminated with water and/or other foreign substances, or that otherwise falls below specifications, can present serious problems for aircraft, including causing engines to fail in flight. Checking fuel quality is a common part of an investigation following any aviation mishap, military or civilian.

In addition, carrier-based aviation operations present unique conditions when it comes to the transfer of fuel, both into storage tanks on the ship to begin with, which can occur while the carrier is underway at sea, as well as in port, and then into aircraft. Personnel aboard all Navy carriers perform regular fuel quality checks at multiple steps in the fuel distribution process.

Trump’s comments about the mishaps came as the President is traveling throughout Asia. He is scheduled to have a meeting on Thursday with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to discuss trade issues.

Nimitz, the Navy’s oldest carrier, is on its final cruise before its planned decommissioning next year. The flattop is currently in the process of returning to its home port in Naval Base Kitsap in Washington State after having been deployed to the Middle East for most of the summer, primarily as part of the U.S. response to attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on commercial shipping.

Also known by its hull number CVN-68, the Nimitz, which was first commissioned into service in 1975, is the lead ship in its class. The vessel’s design built on the Navy’s prior experience with its pioneering nuclear-powered supercarrier, the one-of-a-kind USS Enterprise (CVN-65), which served from 1961 to 2012.

The Navy began preparing for the Nimitz’s demise in 2023, which you can read more about here. The Newport News Shipbuilding division of Huntington Ingalls Industries has received multiple contracts already to begin laying the groundwork for removing the nuclear fuel from the carrier’s reactors and other aspects of the disposal process.

Whether contaminated fuel turns out to be a factor in, or even the root cause of the Seahawk and Super Hornet going down in the South China Sea, remains to be seen. U.S. military aviation accidents typically take weeks if not months to complete.

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THIS is the terrifying moment a helicopter crashes onto a freeway just feet away from shocked drivers in California.

Three people on board are in a critical condition after the Airbus lost control before plunging towards the busy road and smashing into the ground.

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Footage showed the chopper flying low above Highway 50 near Howe Avenue in Sacramento.

Within seconds it started plummeting towards the ground with huge plumes of smoke seen billowing across the highway as it smashed.

Pictures from after the crash shows the medical helicopter upside down in the middle of the road.

Smashed glass and debris can be seen strewn across the highway as firefighters and cops surround the wreckage.

Motorist Davyd Bychkoviak was driving past just after 7pm local time (3am UK time) as the helicopter spiralled through the air.

Mr Bychkoviak said: “I’m still shaking. It was a brush with death.

“The helicopter crashed inches away from me. The dust kicked up into my face, and I could feel the wind of the propellers in the car.

“If it had crashed on the road there would have been multiple fatalities.”

The Sacramento Fire Department and Federal Aviation Administration said the helicopter went down on the eastbound lanes of Highway 50 near Howe Avenue.

They added that it was a helicopter that provides air medical services.

REACH Air Medical Services later confirmed to ABC7 news that three of its crew were hurt in the crash.

Captain Justin Sylvia, from the Sacramento Fire Department, confirmed three people were “transported in critical condition” to local hospitals.

These included two females and a male made up of a pilot, nurse and paramedic.

No patient was on board at the time of the disaster, Captain Sylvia added.

Speaking at a press conference today he said: “There was one victim that was trapped underneath the helicopter… [with] the help of just civilians that were standing around, they were able to lift part of that helicopter out and get that victim out.

“There’s a pretty large debris field around that at this point.

“The lucky portion for us, I’d say, is the fact that the helicopter did not catch on fire.”

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A drone crashed into a hotel in the southern Israeli city of Eilat on Thursday, causing a fire but no casualties, authorities said. Yemen’s Houthi group, who have been firing drones and missiles in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, claimed responsibility for the attack.

A MILITARY helicopter carrying four soldiers has crashed near an army base, according to a defence spokesperson.

The Black Hawk came down at around 9pm near the Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state.

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Four special operations soldiers are understood to have been on board when it crashed.

Reports claim the chopper came down around 35 miles west of the base.

It is not yet known if there were any casualties.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Department were called out to reports of an explosion in the area.

A spokesperson said: “Deputies have located what is believed to be the scene.

“We have been advised that the military lost contact with a helicopter in the area, and we are working closely with JBLM to deploy any resources needed to assist.

“Deputies located the crash site but have been unable to continue rescue efforts as the scene is on fire and is starting to overheat their footwear.”

Army Special Operations Command has described the horror crash as a “mishap”.

The troops on board are believed to be in the hardened “Night Stalkers” special operations regiment.

“Four service members assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) were on board an MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter involved in an aviation mishap in a rural area near Joint Base Lewis-McChord,” a spokesperson said.

“This remains an active, ongoing situation.”

They added that the terrain where the Black Hawk crashed is “hard to reach”.

A fire sparked by the crash has reportedly smothered up to one acre of land.

Back in March, another helicopter crashed at the same base during a training exercise.

Two army pilots were injured when the chopper came down.

Colonel Bryen Freigo said at the time: “The two crew members were medically evacuated to Madigan Army Medical Center for evaluation and treatment and remain at the hospital in stable condition.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with these families and soldiers during their recovery.”

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A passenger bus veered off the road in a mountainous region in Sri Lanka, plunging down a 300-metre precipice and killing at least 15 people onboard. Authorities say the driver was speeding and lost control of the vehicle.

Police say a 39-year-old man has been taken into custody over the incident in Sydney’s Woollahra suburb.

Australian police have arrested a 34-year-old man after he drove his car into the front gate of the Russian consulate in Sydney, according to police and local media.

In a statement, the New South Wales Police Force said the crash took place on Monday morning after officers responded to reports of an “unauthorised vehicle” parked in the driveway of the consulate in the Sydney suburb of Woollahra.

Officers tried to speak with the driver, but he “drove his vehicle into the gates of the property”, the statement said.

A 24-year-old constable was injured on his hand during the incident, it added.

Television footage from Sky News and Nine showed a car with a smashed window abandoned next to a Russian flagpole.

There was no immediate comment from the Russian consulate.

TWO married couples are dead after their British car veered off the road and smashed into trees in Germany.

The horrific accident happened shortly after midnight on Saturday near a highway in the Kassel district, north of Hesse in central Germany.

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The 32-year-old male driver and three female passengers aged 30, 31 and 32 all died at the scene despite the best efforts of German emergency services.

The vehicle had a British number plate, but The Sun understands UK officials have not been contacted for assistance in relation to the crash.

The car appears to have veered off the road at around 12:30am on Saturday.

It shot into a coppice of trees around 30m from the road, according to the Kassel police department.

One of the victims’ phones sent an automatic alert to the emergency services, who sent an ambulance to the scene.

Fire engines, more ambulances and police vehicles were all dispatched when the severity of the accident became clear.

The car was on its side and wedged between two trees when crews arrived.

Emergency workers only discovered there was a car full of people when they removed the roof.

All four people were pronounced dead at the scene after being pulled from the wreckage.

Those who worked on the victims were immediately supported by the specialist mental health workers.

A fire department spokesperson said: “The situation on scene was that a car was lying on its side, wedged between several trees.

“Initially, we assumed there were only two people in the wreckage.

“A crew was therefore dispatched to explore the wider area to search for any occupants who might have been ejected during the impact.

“At the same time, the vehicle was stabilized and a technical rescue using hydraulic rescue equipment was initiated.

“Shortly after the start of operations, we identified another person in the back seat.

“Once we had almost completely removed the roof, we discovered another person in the car.

“The emergency doctor checked the vital functions of the occupants, but unfortunately could only confirm that all of them were dead.”

Reflecting on the night’s horrors, the spokesperson said: “This high number of deaths is an extraordinary operation for our Reinhardshagen Volunteer Fire Department.

“For some of the emergency personnel, it is the first time they have been confronted with death in this way.

“Therefore, a great deal is being done to help us process these images.

“We will also discuss this among ourselves and within families, because not everyone can easily shake off what they have seen.”

A police investigation into the crash is ongoing.

Whether it’s leaning into AI-generated images or President Trump’s signature all-caps style, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s social media accounts have been firing left and right in recent weeks.

The latest target? None other than rock ’n’ roll figure and avid Trump supporter Kid Rock.

In a post on Sunday to X, Newsom’s official account shared an AI-generated image of the rock-rapper, whose legal name is Robert James Ritchie. In it, he wears his finest Uncle Sam garb and points at viewers, issuing a statement: “Kid Rock wants YOU to support Gavin Newsom.”

Text mimicking the social media style that President Trump has become known for accompanied the post: “I ACCEPT! — GCN.”

The 54-year-old artist waited less than an hour to respond, quickly clearing up that he did not, in fact, support the California governor.

“The only support Gavin Newscum will ever get out of me is from …,” he wrote, and ended his statement by referencing a portion of his anatomy.

On Monday, the press office account would respond by stating, “I HATE KID ROCK !!! — GCN.” Some users suspected that it was an allusion to President Trump’s use of an AI Taylor Swift endorsement in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election.

In September 2024, Trump wrote “I accept!” over a series of AI-generated images of Swift fans posted to his own social media site Truth Social. The post used a fake image of Swift wearing Uncle Sam’s signature attire.

On Tuesday, Newsom’s account continued the bit. The post on X said, “HAS ANYONE NOTICED THAT SINCE I SAID “I HATE KID ROCK” HE’S NO LONGER ‘HOT?’ — GCN.”

There’s been no response — yet.

Aug. 12 (UPI) — A small plane landing at a Montana airport crashed into a second aircraft on the runaway, according to officials who said there were only minor injuries.

The incident occurred at 2:08 p.m. MDT Monday at Kalispell City Airport, located in northwestern Montana, about 200 miles northwest of Helena.

The Federal Aviation Administration explained in a statement that a Socata TBM 700 struck an unoccupied Swearingen SX-300 after landing.

According to a statement from the Kalispell Police Department, the preliminary investigation indicates that the pilot lost control of the aircraft while attempting to land at the airport, resulting in the runway crash.

“All four occupants of the aircraft, who were from out of state, reported only minor injuries and were treated at the scene,” KPD said. “No additional injuries have been reported.”

The Kalispell Fire Department had been among the agencies that responded to the scene, as the plane crash seemingly resulted in a fire, which authorities said has since been contained.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

A TEENAGER has died after a car she was travelling in crashed into a tree on a rural road in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The woman, 18, tragically passed away when the silver Renault Clio – which she was a passenger in – collided with a tree after veering off the road in Hartlepool at 4.18am on Thursday, Cleveland Police said.

A 26-year-old man, who was driving the vehicle, was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving as well as other driving offences.

He remains in police custody at this time.

The tragic crash took place on a road known locally as Greatham Back Lane, which connects the A689 to Greatham village.

Police said the woman suffered fatal injuries in the collision and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Her family have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.

Cops are now looking to witnesses or anyone who may have CCTV or dashcam footage of the silver Clio in the village to come forward.

You can contact Cleveland Police on 101, quoting reference number 148268.

Alternatively, you can upload footage directly by following this link.

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July 31 (UPI) — A U.S. Navy F-35 fighter jet crashed following an “aviation incident” in California, authorities and officials said.

The incident occurred at about 6:30 p.m. PDT on Wednesday, Naval Air Station Lemoore said in a statement.

Specifics about the crash were not made public, but the Navy said the F-35C “went down” not far from Naval Air Station Lemoore, located about 38 miles southwest of Fresno.

“We can confirm the pilot successfully ejected and is safe,” it said.

The aircraft was attached to the Strike Fighter Squadron VFA-125, known as the Rough Riders.

It is the second crash involving an F-35 fighter jet so far this year in the United States.

In late January, an F-35 Lightning II aircraft crashed at Alaska’s Eielson Air Force Base.

The Air Force said the pilot was safe following the incident.

The F-35C is the fifth-generation of a long-rang stealth fighter jet used by the United States Navy, Marine Crops and Air Force. According to the Navy, it is used to perform air-to-air combat, air-to-ground strikes, reconnaissance and electronic warfare.

The Lockheed Martin-manufactured plane costs between $62.2 million and $77.2 million, according to a December Congressional Research Service report.

July 21 (UPI) — At least 20 people were killed Monday after a Bangladesh Air Force aircraft crashed onto a school campus in the capital city of Dhaka.

The total of victims was announced by the Bangladesh Inter-Services Public Relations, or ISPR, which also reported that the sum total of people injured in the crash has reached 171, with victims brought to eight different hospitals.

Chief Adviser of the Bangladesh Government Muhammad Yunus released a statement that explained the training plane crashed into the Milestone School and College campus in the city’s Diayabari area, “resulting in casualties.” Students in the school range from elementary to high school grades.

Some of the bodies of the dead must be identified through DNA testing, which will then be transferred to their families.

The Bangladeshi military said in a statement that a mechanical error led to the crash that also killed the pilot, identified as Flight Lieutenant Md. Taukir Islam, who reportedly had attempted to steer the F-7 jet to a less populated area after the mechanical issue occurred.

The plane crashed into the second floor of a building where third and fourth graders were located. Yunus said the incident will be investigated.

“The loss suffered by the Air Force, the students, parents, teachers, and staff of Milestone School and College, as well as others affected by this accident, is irreparable,” Yunus continued. “This is a moment of profound pain for the nation.”

Yunis also announced that the Bangladeshi interim government will observe a one-day state of mourning to mark the crash.

Mostly students killed and more than 50 wounded as training aircraft crashes into campus in capital Dhaka.

At least 19 people have been killed as a Bangladesh air force training aircraft crashed into a college and school campus in capital Dhaka, a fire services official and local media reports said.

The F-7 BGI aircraft crashed into the campus of Milestone School and College in Dhaka’s Uttara neighbourhood at about 1pm (07:00 GMT), when students were taking tests or attending regular classes.

More than 50 people, including children and adults, were hospitalised with burns after the crash, a doctor at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery told reporters.

Videos of the aftermath of the crash showed a big fire near a lawn emitting a thick plume of smoke into the sky, as crowds watched from a distance.

Firefighters sprayed water on the mangled remains of the plane, which appeared to have rammed into the side of a building, damaging iron grills and creating a gaping hole in the structure.

“A third-grade student was brought in dead, and three others, aged 12, 14 and 40, were admitted to the hospital,” Bidhan Sarker, head of the burn unit at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where some victims were taken, told the Reuters news agency.

Social media videos showed people screaming and crying as others tried to comfort them.

“When I was picking [up] my kids and went to the gate, I realised something came from behind … I heard an explosion. When I looked back, I only saw fire and smoke,” Masud Tarik, a teacher at the school, told Reuters.

Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s interim government, said “necessary measures” would be taken to investigate the cause of the accident and “ensure all kinds of assistance”.

“The loss suffered by the air force … students, parents, teachers and staff, and others in this accident is irreparable,” he said.

Yunus also announced that an emergency hotline has been activated at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery in the wake of the crash.

The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society called for donations for those injured.

The incident came a little over a month after an Air India plane crashed on top of a medical college hostel in neighbouring India’s Ahmedabad city, killing 241 of the 242 people on board and 19 on the ground, marking the world’s worst aviation disaster in a decade.

Helicopter with eight people on board crashes at Aden Adde airport, the main international airport in Mogadishu.

A helicopter used by an African Union peacekeeping mission has crashed at the international airport in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killing at least three people, authorities said.

The incident occurred at Aden Adde airport on Wednesday as the helicopter was trying to land, according to Artan Mohamed, the head of the immigration office at the airport.

The helicopter, which belonged to the Ugandan Air Force but was being operated by the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), had taken off from Baledogle Airfield in the Lower Shabelle region with eight people on board, he said.

The fate of the remaining five people on board has yet to be determined, said a Ugandan military spokesperson.

Witnesses described the helicopter plummeting to the ground and exploding, causing a fire.

Abdirahim Ali, who lives nearby, said he saw “a huge explosion and smoke everywhere” while aviation officer Omar Farah told The Associated Press news agency that he “saw the helicopter spinning and then it fell very fast”.

Minor delays were reported at the airport, but the director-general of the country’s civil aviation authority said that flights had resumed.

“The situation is under control. The runway is clear and fully operational – flights can land and take off as usual,” Ahmed Macalin Hassan noted.

The AUSSOM mission has more than 11,000 personnel in Somalia from countries including Uganda and Kenya.

They are helping the Somali military to counter the armed group al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda affiliate that wants to topple the country’s government and establish its own rule.

This week, the Somali army killed a prominent leader from the group in the Middle Shabelle region, state media reported.

Quoting military sources, the Somali National News Agency said the leader was targeted during an operation in the Dar Nama’a area.