LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Fourteen people were killed in last week’s UPS Flight 2976 crash, including 11 on the ground, raising questions about what’s next for the industrial area south of Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport.
Many of those killed on the ground worked in the area, where low-flying planes are a common sight. Now, the future of the area, which has seen industrial development built right alongside the city landfill, is in limbo.
The city previously relocated thousands of residents and roughly 150 businesses away from the airport, primarily north of the airport. The area south of the airport, however, has a long history of industrial use — the Ford Assembly Plant that sits at the end of two runways.
WDRB previously reported close to 7 billion pounds of cargo came through Louisville's airport in 2024, making it the third-busiest freight airport in North America.
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Metro Council member Dan Seum, whose district includes the crash site, described the scene as “apocalyptic” at the time of the incident and said the trauma for witnesses is profound.
The industrial development south of the airport dates back to World War II, when Vultee Aircraft built B-24 bombers nearby to take advantage of proximity to the runways. Later, in the 1980s, the airport expanded to accommodate UPS, leading the city to move 3,700 families. For decades, the area sat largely empty until warehouses and maintenance facilities arrived.
The crash of UPS Flight 2976 struck areas zoned M-3 for manufacturing, processing, and storage, hitting a petroleum recycling facility and auto salvage businesses. Melissa Winters, who worked in the area six days a week, recalled the constant awareness of low-flying planes.
“I would always freeze and look up,” Winters said. “Every time, I thought, it would take a lot to have one of those just fall out of the sky. When this happened, I froze.”
Despite the tragedy, there are no plans to rezone the area. Louisville city officials note the airport remains surrounded by homes and businesses, and if winds had been different, the plane could have struck a residential neighborhood.
In the 1980s, the city considered moving the airport west of the Gene Snyder Freeway but ultimately decided to keep it closer to town — a choice that continues to pose challenges today.
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