Amazon cargo plane overspeed warning ignored before fatal Miami runway overrun
A pilot on the Amazon cargo flight that overran a Miami runway warned of excessive speed, but the warning was not heeded, leading to five deaths.
Highlights from the cockpit recorder, disclosed by the National Transportation Safety Board, reveal that a pilot on the Amazon cargo jet repeatedly warned the crew about an excessive approach speed and urged a last-second abort, but the co-pilot did not consistently acknowledge the alerts. The aircraft landed too fast on a Sunday afternoon, surged roughly 1,300 feet beyond the runway end, collided with a van carrying employees of a plane-cleaning firm, and then struck a compact SUV before igniting.
All five fatalities were occupants of the van, and five others were injured, including two who stayed in critical condition as of Tuesday. Both pilots escaped injury. The full transcript of the recording will be released later.
How this was covered
- Coverage peaked at 8 outlets in a single hour
How this story developed
- Sep 6 Cargo Boeing 767 linked to Amazon overruns Miami runway, massive smoke plume observed
- Sep 7 Reporters now note five deaths and five injuries associated with the incident.
- Sep 7 Three of the injured remain in critical condition and the pilot and co‑pilot were reported trapped in the cockpit.
- Sep 8 NTSB retrieved the flight data and cockpit voice recorders and sent them to its headquarters.
- Sep 9 NTSB released analysis showing pilots delayed brake application, released brakes and added thrust, and that speed brakes and thrust reversers were not deployed.
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