FedEx targets full MD-11F fleet return by Q4

Dhaka: US cargo carrier FedEx has returned four MD-11 freighters to service and expects its entire MD-11F fleet to resume operations by the fourth quarter of 2026.

FedEx President, Chief Executive, and Director Rajesh Subramaniam confirmed the plan during the company's fourth quarter 2026 earnings call on June 23.

"We began safely returning the MD-11s to service last month, working in lockstep with Boeing, the FAA, and the NTSB," Subramaniam said, crediting flight operations, technical operations, and airline safety teams for enabling four jets to resume flight so far.

The MD-11Fs had remained grounded for more than six months after the US Federal Aviation Administration issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive ordering inspections of the type, following the fatal crash of a UPS MD-11F on November 4 last year.

US freighter operator Western Global has also begun returning its MD-11 freighters to service in May, joining FedEx in resuming flights with the type.

UPS, however, retired its entire MD-11F fleet in the fourth quarter of 2025 and said it would replace the aircraft with Boeing 767Fs.

While FedEx opted to keep operating the MD-11F, it has retired five units of the type. Subramaniam confirmed the airline has removed 34 jet aircraft from its overall fleet over the past four years.