FedEx A300 Nose Gear Collapse During Maintenance at BWI Airport

This article summarizes reporting by WBAL-TV and Greg Ng.

FedEx A300 Suffers Nose Gear Collapse During Maintenance at BWI

Emergency response teams were dispatched to Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, following a ground incident involving a FedEx Express cargo aircraft. According to reporting by WBAL-TV, the nose landing gear of the parked aircraft collapsed while it was situated outside a maintenance hangar.

The incident occurred while the aircraft was stationary and undergoing routine maintenance work. Both airport officials and FedEx have confirmed that there were no injuries to maintenance personnel or first responders. Because the event took place away from the active runways near the hangar facilities, commercial passenger operations at BWI were not impacted.

Incident Overview and Official Statements

The aircraft involved has been identified as an Airbus A300-600F, registered as N682FE. Data from flight tracking services indicates the jet had recently arrived from Memphis before being taken out of service for maintenance. Images circulating on social media and referenced by WBAL-TV show the aircraft’s nose resting directly on the tarmac with the forward gear strut retracted or collapsed beneath it.

FedEx Response

In a statement regarding the event, FedEx confirmed the safety of their team members. As reported by multiple outlets including WBAL-TV and Simple Flying, the company stated:

“We are aware of an incident involving one of our parked aircraft undergoing maintenance in Baltimore. No one was injured as a result of this incident, and we are thankful for the swift response of our team members and first responders.”

Airport Operations

BWI officials characterized the event as a “mechanical malfunction.” Fire and rescue crews responded immediately to the scene as a precaution, though no fire was reported. The aircraft remains grounded while the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and company maintenance teams assess the structural damage and determine the cause of the gear failure.

Aircraft Profile: N682FE

The airframe involved, N682FE, is a veteran of the FedEx fleet. According to fleet data, the aircraft is approximately 27 years old, having been delivered in the late 1990s. The Airbus A300-600F serves as a workhorse for the logistics giant, frequently utilized for short-to-medium-haul domestic routes. Prior to this maintenance stop, flight logs show the aircraft was active on routes connecting Memphis (MEM), Lubbock (LBB), and Baltimore (BWI).

AirPro News Analysis: Ground Maintenance Risks

While the specific cause of this collapse is currently under investigation, nose gear failures on parked aircraft are distinct from landing incidents. In our analysis of similar maintenance-related events, these collapses are often attributed to procedural or mechanical safeguards.

When an aircraft is on jacks or undergoing specific hydraulic tests, mechanics typically insert “downlock pins” (often called safety pins) into the landing gear assembly to physically prevent retraction. If these pins are not installed, are damaged, or are bypassed during a “gear swing” test, a loss of hydraulic pressure can cause the heavy nose section to fold the gear strut. Alternatively, fatigue in the drag brace, the component responsible for locking the gear in the extended position, can lead to failure, particularly in aging airframes.

This incident follows a generally strong safety record for FedEx, though the carrier has dealt with gear issues in the past, including a Boeing 757 belly landing in Chattanooga in 2023. However, unlike those flight incidents, this event poses no risk to public airspace safety as it was strictly a ground maintenance occurrence.

Sources:

• WBAL-TV
• FlightRadar24