FedEx A300 Nose Gear Collapses While Parked Outside BWI Marshall Airport Hangar

BALTIMORE, MD — Operations at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) faced an unusual sight today, February 4, 2026, after the nose landing gear of a parked FedEx Express Airbus A300 (N682FE) collapsed outside a maintenance hangar. The incident, which occurred late Tuesday, has prompted an immediate assessment by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors and adds another chapter to the ongoing scrutiny of the carrier's wide-body fleet.

The incident was first reported shortly after a visual confirmation showed the aircraft, confirmed to be a FedEx freighter, resting on its nose on the apron area adjacent to the airport’s cargo facilities. Unlike the high-stakes emergency landings seen in previous months, this failure occurred while the aircraft was stationary, avoiding what could have been a far more catastrophic outcome had it occurred during taxi or takeoff.

Stationary Failure Amid Fleet-Wide Inspections

The aircraft was reportedly positioned near the BWI maintenance hangar when the front strut appeared to give way. While the exact cause remains under investigation, the timing is particularly sensitive for FedEx. The carrier has been navigating a complex maintenance cycle following the FAA’s emergency airworthiness directive (AD 2025-23-51) issued in late 2025, which required rigorous inspections of various heavy cargo airframes.

Local news outlets, including WBAL-TV 11 Baltimore, provided early visual evidence of the scene. The station reported:

“Photos show collapsed nose gear on parked FedEx cargo plane,”

Further noting that airport emergency services were dispatched as a standard precaution, though no fire or hazardous materials leaks were detected.

Safety Record and Regulatory Context

The BWI collapse comes at a time when the aviation industry is still reeling from the grounding of the MD-11 fleet in late 2025. Although it has not been confirmed whether the BWI aircraft is an MD-11 or a Boeing 767, both types have faced significant gear-related scrutiny. In 2024, a FedEx 767 famously landed on its nose in Istanbul, and in 2023, a 757 suffered a similar failure in Chattanooga due to an “alternate extension system wire break.”

The FAA’s recent emergency directive, which prohibits further flight of certain aircraft until inspections are completed, was issued because “the unsafe condition could compromise the aircraft's ability to maintain safe flight and landing.”

Comparison of Recent Landing Gear Incidents

Operational Impact

Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA) officials confirmed that the incident did not disrupt commercial passenger traffic on BWI’s main runways, as the collapse occurred in a restricted cargo-operations zone. However, the task of recovering the aircraft remains a significant logistical hurdle. Heavy-lift cranes and specialised recovery "mats" are expected to be utilised to lift the nose of the plane and tow it into the hangar for a full forensic teardown of the gear assembly.

FedEx has not yet commented on whether this specific tail was part of the group recently undergoing mandatory safety reviews, but a spokesperson previously stated that the company is “working with investigators to fully understand the matter.”