We still don’t know the final death toll from the Nov. 4 UPS crash at Muhammad Ali International Airport, but it’s clear that a southerly breeze may have spared Louisville from an even greater tragedy.
With 12 people confirmed dead and others still missing or injured, calling the city “lucky” feels difficult. Yet, if UPS Flight 2976 had taken off to the north, the devastation could have extended across the Watterson Expressway, Phillips Lane hotels, or even residential neighborhoods and the University of Louisville.
Airplanes typically take off into the wind to generate lift at lower speeds. A northbound MD-11, driven by opposite wind conditions, might have caused catastrophic damage across one of the city’s busiest corridors.
A Risk Decades in the Making
Louisville’s airport sits in a densely developed urban area, surrounded by highways, businesses, and the Kentucky Exposition Center. That’s because, more than 50 years ago, city leaders decided not to relocate the airport to a rural county…