Two crew members were killed on Friday when a large cargo aircraft belonging to the United Parcel Service (UPS) crashed in the emirate of Dubai, officials said.
The 2007-build Boeing 747-400 (N591UP) went down around 8 p.m. local time (12 p.m. EDT) near a United Arab Emirates (UAE) army camp, about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) from Dubai International Airport. Two crew members were on board.
UPS Flight 6 crashed moments after it took off from Dubai Airport and was scheduled to fly to Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany, UPS said. Local media reported that the crew reported a fire in the cockpit shortly before it went down in an unpopulated area.
“Safety is a key priority for UPS,” said Airline & International Operations Manager Bob Lekites. “This incident is very unfortunate and we will do everything we can to find the cause. Our thoughts go out to the crewmembers involved in the incident and their families.”
“We will also release more information as it becomes available, in cooperation with government authorities,” Lekites added. “We will not speculate about the cause. Until then, we ask for your patience in this difficult time.”
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it will dispatch an aviation investigator to assist the local government in its investigation of the crash.
NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman designated senior air safety investigator Bill English as the U.S. Accredited Representative, whose team will include NTSB specialists in the areas of human performance, fire, operations, and systems. The team will also include technical advisors from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Boeing, UPS, GE and the Independent Pilots Association.
Boeing also commented on the accident, saying it extends its ‘deep condolences’ to the families and friends of the crewmembers lost in the crash. “Boeing will send a team to provide technical support to the investigation upon invitation from the authorities,” a statement said.
In October 2009, a Sudanese Boeing 707 cargo plane crashed after taking off from an airport near Dubai, killing six crew members.
