NTSB: Amazon-contracted 767 pilots flagged excess speed before fatal Miami runway overrun

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report on Thursday 1 October that the first officer of an Amazon-contracted cargo plane warned the captain several times that the aircraft was coming in too fast before it overran a runway at Miami International Airport. 1 2 21 Air Flight 7598, a Boeing 767-33A freighter flying for Amazon from San Juan, Puerto Rico, landed on Runway 30 at 1:53 p.m. local time on 6 September, overran it, hit a perimeter fence, crossed a street and stopped about 1,200 feet beyond the pavement, according to CBS News's account of the report. 1 The plane struck a Ford Econoline van on an airport perimeter road, killing five of its seven occupants and seriously injuring the other two, and then hit an SUV on Northwest 67th Avenue whose only occupant was seriously injured; the two pilots, the only people aboard, had minor injuries. 1

The NTSB said the captain did not verbally acknowledge all of the first officer's comments about speed, and CBS reported that more than 10 electronic warnings, including "sink rate" and "too low terrain" alerts, were captured on the flight recorder. 2 1 The plane touched down about 3,750 feet past the start of the runway at about 184 mph (160 knots); CBS added that it crossed the threshold at about 204 mph. 2 1 Neither the speed brakes nor the thrust reversers were deployed. 2 1

According to CBS, the captain called for a go-around about 15 seconds after touchdown, when only about 415 feet of runway remained; Reuters described this as the captain considering aborting the landing after touchdown. 1 2 The NTSB said an FAA air traffic controller cleared the flight to land without giving wind information, which FAA rules require; about four minutes earlier the controller had given another flight winds from 190° at 19 knots gusting to 22, but the 21 Air flight was not on that frequency. 2 Thunderstorms were reported at the airport with gusts of 17 to 26 knots, and no crushable-concrete overrun safety system was installed at the end of Runway 30. 1

It was the first day the captain (about 7,267 flight hours) and first officer (about 2,800 hours) had flown together; the flight was their second of the day after Miami–San Juan, and Reuters said it was the plane's third flight that day, following Cincinnati–Miami. 1 2 The aircraft was a 1994-built 767 converted from passenger service to a freighter in 2016; it was substantially damaged, with a post-crash fire and the right engine and part of the right wing separating. 1 The 12-page report states no conclusion on why the crash happened, and a final report is expected in one to two years. 1

Amazon has paused its use of 21 Air and says it remains committed to supporting the investigation; 21 Air said it is reviewing the report and will "take all appropriate action to improve our safety based on the facts as they are established." The FAA did not immediately comment. 2 Pablo Rojas, an attorney for a surviving van occupant, said the report does not answer all questions about the airline's broader operations and that he will examine them independently. 1