Five people died and three others were critically injured after an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport on September 6, prompting Amazon to pause its operations with carrier 21 Air as federal investigators probe the disaster.
The tragedy unfolded just before 2 p.m. when a 32-year-old Boeing 767-300 freighter—operating as Flight 7598 for Amazon and operated by North Carolina-based 21 Air—arrived from San Juan, Puerto Rico, after an earlier leg from Cincinnati. The aircraft had operated as a passenger jet for various airlines from 1994 to 2015, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking service. Instead of stopping on the pavement, the aircraft barreled past the usable runway, traveling approximately 396 meters into the grass and tearing through fencing before smashing into vehicles on a road outside airport property.
Devastation on the Ground and the Rescue Effort
National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy described the accident site on Monday as utter devastation, walking a route marked by tire tracks leading from the pavement into the grass, torn fencing, navigational equipment, and the crushed SUV outside airport property. Debris at the scene included vehicle airbags, equipment from the vehicles, the airplane and the airport, and fencing everywhere, according to Ms. Homendy. She noted that the plane travelled about 396 metres past the paved surface.
The five people killed when the cargo jet ran off the runway were all inside a van carrying seven people from a cleaning company and an SUV hit outside of airport property. The van was owned by Professional Ocean Service Corp., an airline cleaning contractor, and Ms. Homendy stated that the vehicle was torn apart. Five people died, three were critically injured and two others were hospitalized with less severe injuries, officials said. The crash sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky, trapping the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and some occupants in cars, said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue. Crews also had to extricate a person who was trapped under a vehicle, and firefighters were forced to use a ladder to climb into the cockpit of the Amazon cargo plane.
Investigating Speed, Touchdown Zones, and Weather
Federal investigators examining the crash spent Monday determining whether the plane touched down too late to stop safely. Video of Sunday’s landing appears to show the Boeing 767 remaining airborne well down the runway before touching down, and aviation experts said investigators will seek to determine exactly where the plane landed, whether it was beyond the normal touchdown zone, and why the pilots did not abandon the landing. Flight tracking data from Flightradar24 indicated the jet had been traveling at 129mph as it exited the usable runway amid thunderstorms and gusting winds, while Automatic Dependent Surveillance broadcast data showed the plane touched down on Runway 30 at about 167 knots, or about 192mph, and went off the runway at over 120mph.
Investigators will also examine the plane’s speed and braking, weather and wind conditions, the aircraft’s mechanical condition, and other factors that could have contributed to the deadly overrun. Miami’s own Automated Surface Observation System reports showed that the plane had tailwinds of 20 knots to 30 knots amid thunderous conditions. Furthermore, the National Transportation Safety Board said that the pilots of the Amazon Prime Air cargo plane considered aborting the landing after the aircraft touched down, citing evidence from a flight data recorder. The NTSB also stated that one pilot cautioned that they were flying “too fast” just over a minute before touching down on the runway that they overran.
Safety Infrastructure and Corporate Fallout
Miami International Airport lacked a key hidden safety feature that could have prevented the Amazon cargo plane crash, federal aviation officials say. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has confirmed that the airport is not equipped with the Engineered Materials Arresting System (EMAS) that has been installed at more than 120 airports nationwide. The system places beds of lightweight, crushable material at the end of a runway to help bring planes that overshoot the tarmac safely to a stop, the FAA said. Federal aviation officials for years have recommended that airports utilize the safety system, which has been credited by the FAA with helping save at least 497 lives. Despite this, EMAS is not a mandatory requirement and airports are permitted to use other FAA-approved methods to reduce the risk of planes running off runways.
Amazon said on Sunday it was pausing operations with Miami-based 21 Air, the cargo carrier that operated the Amazon-branded plane that crashed in Miami, killing five people.
“After the tragic incident last weekend, we’ve spent time supporting the investigation and reviewing some of the surrounding circumstances and we’ve decided to pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement to Reuters. “We’ll continue working to support the investigation and everyone affected.”
In its own statement to Reuters, 21 Air addressed the ongoing review:
“We remain focused on supporting the families and loved ones who were impacted by this accident, as well as working closely with the NTSB and all our partners, like Amazon, as the investigation continues. We are confident in our safety policies, procedures and training.”
