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At least nine people lost their lives and 11 others were hurt after a UPS cargo plane crashed while taking off from an international airport in Louisville, Kentucky on Tuesday night.

Aviation experts believe the plane crashed due to a single engine malfunctioned and another appeared to be damaged during take-off.

It is unclear what caused the plane to crash, leading to a huge explosion to ignite after it couldn't become airborne from the airstrip. Video evidence showed flames were consuming a single wing of the plane during its takeoff attempt, which may have spread through the plane and caused the explosion, or the jet could have caught fire after colliding with an object on the ground.

What's clear is that the 144,000 litres of fuel on board the MD-11 jet required for the journey likely escalated the blaze, which quickly spread to several buildings past the airstrip and continued burning for hours.

What initiated the incident?

UPS operates from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport as a logistics center for its worldwide network and its Flight 2976 was at the start of a 4,300 mile trip to Hawaii's capital when the freight aircraft attempted to take off.

Tracking information from flight monitoring services indicates the plane began to taxi along the 17R runway at around 17:15 local time and attained a maximum velocity of 214mph.

But verified footage shows that by the time the plane achieved this velocity a blaze had fully consumed its left wing and the plane couldn't climb before the massive explosion.

Authorities issued a local safety directive to local residents and scrambled hundreds of firefighters to the location.

Governor Andy Beshear verified details seen in CCTV footage that depict the aircraft flying just feet above the surface before a intense light consumed the aircraft. It is then seen slamming into the ground as a huge fireball erupts around it about a minute into its journey.

Authenticated footage recorded by drivers on adjacent roads showed the flames erupting into the skyline while later videos revealed smoke billowing from the scene.

Overhead photographs broadcast by local media depicted debris showering the runway and landing on the tops of at least two local businesses.

Potential causes of the accident

Air traffic control communications examined are largely garbled and filled with static so no meaningful conversation can be heard about the crash as it unfolded.

However, experts proposed that a catastrophic malfunction of two of the engines may have been the cause of the tragedy.

The MD-11 transport plane uses three powerplants. Two are mounted under the wings, and a third is built into the tail at the base of the vertical stabilizer.

Video verified showed a fire consuming the port wing of the aircraft, which then tilted to the left as it tried to achieve altitude and become airborne.

Multiple specialists independently suggested the left engine may have separated from the plane following a technical or physical breakdown.

Separate images taken after the crash displayed a burned powerplant sitting on the grass next to the runway.

A retired airline pilot and aircraft safety specialist commented that it was "extremely rare" for an engine to detach during operation.

He referenced the 1979 American Airlines Flight 191 disaster, in which 273 individuals were fatally injured after the aircraft's powerplant separated as it took off from Chicago's major airport. Parts of the engine had been damaged when it was installed on the aircraft, but the expert said it was premature to determine whether a comparable issue led to the powerplant separation on the trijet.

The expert said the cargo plane would have been able to fly with only two powerplants but the damage caused by the fire on the left wing was probably extensive enough it caused the plane's third engine to fail to produce power.

"With such a catastrophic event we cannot determine additional destruction was caused when the engine came adrift," he said.

Another aviation expert observed the video evidence appeared to show the remaining powerplant had been damaged because it released smoke. The damage could have happened while it was pelted with debris from the fire and the engine detaching.

"The upper engine that expelled a puff of smoke seems to shut down almost immediately afterwards," the expert stated. "That left only the starboard powerplant generating power, creating a significant thrust asymmetry and making the plane incapable to gain height.

"Losing two engines during take-off results in only a third of its power and minimal opportunity of maintaining flight, particularly under maximum take-off weight," the specialist continued.

Why did the crash cause such damage?

Footage from the aftermath showed a situation of total disorder with numerous blazes blazing across a large swathe of the location and smoke rising upward.

The aircraft, which was 34 years old and had been used as a passenger plane until 2006, had already completed one round trip from Louisville to the East Coast on Tuesday.

Authorities haven't verified which goods was aboard the Hawaii-bound aircraft, though officials said the aircraft didn't contain anything that would create a heightened risk of environmental hazard.

"This was a long-haul cargo flight from Kentucky to Hawaii, so the MD-11 was transporting a lot of jet fuel," a specialist said. "That heavy fuel load not only reduced performance but also accounts for the large fireball seen after the crash."

Authorities informed media that the aircraft was carrying 38,000 gallons of jet fuel for the extended trip when it crashed. The fire was likely amplified on the surface because the aircraft slammed into a fuel recycling business next to the airport.

A specialist said authorities will concentrate on how the initial fire began, and "if wreckage hit the central powerplant, and if previous repairs on the portside powerplant were a factor." The expert continued: "Atmospheric conditions were favorable, so weather-related causes are improbable."

The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched personnel to the location and will now lead the investigation into the causes of the crash, though this can take up to two years to finalize.