[1] Emery Worldwide Airlines began operations in the early 1980s with a fleet composed mainly of Boeing 727 and Douglas DC-8 freighter aircraft.

It flew scheduled nighttime routes to and from Emery Worldwide’s freight sortation hub in Dayton, OH, and connecting flights to Emery's European hub in Maastricht, Netherlands.

Flight 17 crashed on February 16, killing its 3 crew members, and on April 26, another of its jets crash-landed in Nashville, TN.

[2] Following an FAA investigation that discovered more than 100 violations of safety regulations, Emery Worldwide Airlines had its planes grounded on August 13, 2001.

Emery Worldwide Airlines had in the past operated the following aircraft:[5]