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UPS Pilot’s Widow Sues Boeing, GE and VT San Antonio Over 2025 MD-11 Crash

The case is the first by a flight-crew family seeking punitive damages.

Overview

  • Donna Diamond filed the wrongful-death complaint on Feb. 25 in Jefferson County Circuit Court against Boeing, GE Aerospace and VT San Antonio Aerospace, alleging negligence, wrongful death and loss of consortium while requesting a jury trial and punitive damages.
  • Seconds after takeoff from Louisville on Nov. 4, 2025, the MD-11’s left engine and pylon separated, the aircraft caught fire and crashed into an industrial area, killing three crew members and 12 people on the ground.
  • An NTSB preliminary report identified fatigue cracks and overstress failure in bearing hardware that secured the left engine to the wing, and the federal investigation remains active.
  • The aircraft was powered by GE CF6 engines and had undergone maintenance at VT San Antonio Aerospace in the weeks before the accident; the FAA later ordered inspections that sidelined MD-11s, and UPS retired its MD-11 fleet in January.
  • The filing is the first publicly reported suit by a surviving flight-crew family from the crash, Boeing and GE issued condolences and said they are supporting the NTSB’s probe, and UPS is not named as a defendant in this case.