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At least nine people have died and 11 left injured following a freight aircraft crashed while taking off from a major air hub in Kentucky's largest city on Tuesday evening.

Aircraft specialists suggest the plane crashed after one engine failed and a second seemed compromised during take-off.

The exact cause remains unknown why the aircraft failed, leading to a massive fireball to erupt after it failed to take-off from the runway. Video evidence revealed flames were consuming a single wing of the plane while it was attempting to take off, potentially spreading across the aircraft and caused the explosion, or the plane might have ignited upon hitting ground-based obstacles.

What's clear is that the 144,000 litres of jet fuel on board the trijet aircraft needed for the flight likely escalated the blaze, which quickly spread to several buildings beyond the runway and burned for hours.

How did it start?

The shipping giant uses the Louisville air hub as a logistics center for its global operations and its designated flight was beginning of a 4,300 mile journey to Hawaii's capital when the cargo plane initiated departure.

Data from flight monitoring services shows the plane began to taxi along the designated runway at around 5:15 PM local and managed to reach a top speed of 344km/h.

But verified footage demonstrate that when the plane achieved this velocity a blaze had fully consumed its port side and the aircraft failed to gain altitude before the massive explosion.

Officials activated a shelter-in-place order to area inhabitants and dispatched hundreds of firefighters to the location.

Governor Andy Beshear verified details visible in security camera recordings that shows the aircraft flying just metres off the ground before a intense light engulfed the plane. It is then observed crashing onto the ground as a huge fireball erupts around it about a minute into its journey.

A verified clip recorded by motorists on a nearby highway displayed the flames erupting into the skyline while later videos revealed smoke pouring from the area.

Overhead photographs broadcast by regional news outlets 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 reviewed are mostly unclear and filled with static so no meaningful conversation can be heard about the crash as it developed.

However, experts suggested that a catastrophic malfunction of multiple 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 rear section at the bottom of the tail fin.

Video verified revealed a blaze engulfing the left wing of the aircraft, which then leaned leftward as it attempted to gain lift and become airborne.

Multiple specialists separately proposed the left engine may have detached from the plane after suffering from a technical or physical breakdown.

Additional photographs taken after the crash showed a charred engine resting on the grass adjacent to the airstrip.

An experienced former aviator and aircraft safety specialist said that it was "extremely rare" for an engine to detach in flight.

He referenced the 1979 American Airlines Flight 191 tragedy, in which 273 people were killed when the plane's engine detached as it took off from Chicago's major airport. Parts of the engine had been damaged when it was replaced on the plane, but the expert said it was premature to determine whether a comparable issue led to the engine to detach on the MD-11.

The specialist explained the freight aircraft would have been capable of flight with just two engines but the destruction resulting from the fire on the left wing was probably extensive enough it caused the plane's third engine to lose thrust.

"Given the severe nature of the incident we cannot know additional destruction was caused when the engine came adrift," the expert commented.

A different aircraft specialist said the footage appeared to show the remaining powerplant had been damaged because it expelled a burst of smoke. The damage could have occurred while it was struck by wreckage from the fire and the engine detaching.

"The upper engine that expelled a puff of smoke appears to wind down almost immediately afterwards," the expert said. "That left only the right engine producing thrust, creating a severe power imbalance and leaving the aircraft unable to achieve altitude.

"Failing two powerplants while departing leaves the aircraft with only a fraction of its thrust and minimal opportunity of maintaining flight, particularly under maximum take-off weight," the expert added.

Reasons for extensive destruction

Post-accident videos revealed a scene of complete chaos with numerous blazes blazing across a extensive area 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 return journey from the Kentucky hub to the East Coast on Tuesday.

It has not been confirmed which goods was on board the Hawaii-bound aircraft, though officials said the plane was not carrying anything that would pose an increased danger of contamination.

"This was a long-haul cargo flight from Louisville to Honolulu, so the MD-11 was carrying a lot of jet fuel," a specialist said. "That heavy fuel load not only diminished capability but also accounts for the massive explosion seen after the crash."

Authorities told reporters that the plane was transporting 144,000 litres of fuel for the long journey when it crashed. The blaze was likely amplified on the surface because the plane crashed into a fuel processing facility next to the airport.

A specialist said authorities will concentrate on the origin of the blaze, and "if wreckage hit the central powerplant, and whether earlier maintenance on the left engine were a factor." The expert continued: "Weather conditions were calm and clear, so environmental factors are unlikely."

The National Transportation Safety Board has sent a team to the site and will take charge of the probe into the accident's origins, though this can take up to two years to finalize.