A UPS cargo plane crashed while departing Worldport in Louisville, Kentucky, killing at least nine and causing a temporary halt to package sorting at the hub. Worldport can sort about 416,000 packages per hour, and experts estimate outbound flights typically carry 10,000–13,000 parcels. UPS says it has contingency plans and will likely reroute freight through regional hubs while operations are restored. Customers should check tracking or await direct contact from UPS about potentially affected shipments.
UPS Cargo Plane Crash at Louisville Worldport Causes Temporary Shipping Delays
A UPS cargo plane crashed while departing Worldport in Louisville, Kentucky, killing at least nine and causing a temporary halt to package sorting at the hub. Worldport can sort about 416,000 packages per hour, and experts estimate outbound flights typically carry 10,000–13,000 parcels. UPS says it has contingency plans and will likely reroute freight through regional hubs while operations are restored. Customers should check tracking or await direct contact from UPS about potentially affected shipments.
04:36, 06.11.2025Economy
UPS cargo plane crash at Worldport disrupts package operations
A UPS cargo plane crashed Tuesday evening while departing Worldport, the company’s largest air hub at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, killing at least nine people and temporarily halting package sorting at the facility.
Package processing at Worldport was stopped late Tuesday and remained paused into Wednesday. According to a UPS fact sheet, the center can sort roughly 416,000 packages per hour, making it a crucial node in UPS’s global network.
UPS has not disclosed how many or what kinds of packages were on the aircraft. Experts estimate that a typical outbound flight from the Louisville hub carries about 10,000–13,000 parcels, though the company has not confirmed figures for this specific flight.
What UPS and experts say
UPS said it has contingency plans in place to help shipments reach their destinations as quickly as conditions permit, but it did not provide details on specific measures. Industry experts expect the company to increase flights into regional hubs and reroute freight to reduce the impact while Worldport’s operations are restored.
“The hubs are going to take on a greater burden until that critical operation in Louisville gets back to full capacity,” said Tom Goldsby, professor of supply chain management at the University of Tennessee.
Ed Anderson, a supply chain and operations management professor at the University of Texas’ McCombs School of Business, estimated the typical parcel count per flight leaving Louisville at roughly 10,000 to 13,000.
What customers should do
Customers seeking updates should check tracking information online or wait to be contacted directly by UPS. The company maintains a claims process for lost or damaged shipments; it is not yet clear whether packages on the downed aircraft will require that process. UPS is expected to reach out to affected customers in the coming days.
Goldsby encouraged patience from consumers and businesses during the recovery period: “People and businesses don’t have a lot of understanding about the supply chain. We just don’t expect our logistics operations to have a calamity or even a bad day.”
Context
The crash comes as UPS is undergoing a strategic turnaround, shifting emphasis from Amazon-focused routes toward business-to-business deliveries. In its most recent earnings report, the company said it has cut 48,000 jobs year to date and closed some facilities as part of that effort; it also reported third-quarter results that beat expectations.
Authorities and UPS are continuing investigations and recovery efforts at the crash site. The company has not responded to additional requests for comment as officials work to determine the cause of the accident and the scope of its impact on shipments.