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The National Transportation Safety Board reported that one pilot first cautioned about excessive speed aboard the Amazon cargo plane one minute and 42 seconds before the cockpit voice recording ended and continued commenting on the issue as automated systems sounded multiple sink rate and too low terrain alerts. The second pilot gave no consistent verbal response to those repeated observations according to the safety board’s summary of cockpit voice recorder data. Fifteen seconds before the recording stopped one pilot called for a go-around prompting engine throttles to increase consistent with takeoff power before they were pulled back to idle four seconds later as the aircraft departed the runway surface the NTSB stated. The agency noted that no speed brakes or thrust reversers were deployed at any point during the landing roll.
Flight data showed the 32-year-old Boeing 767 touched down at 158 knots with only its nose and right main landing gear making initial contact according to the National Transportation Safety Board update covered by Reuters and the Associated Press. The left main gear touched down later while the aircraft was still traveling at high speed roughly halfway down the runway the safety board’s analysis found. Investigators determined the jet overran by 1 300 feet before crossing a perimeter fence and striking vehicles on a public road the NTSB said. A lighter-than-maximum landing weight of 231 000 pounds had been planned for the arrival from San Juan Puerto Rico according to data reviewed by Aviation Week.
All five people killed were occupants of a van owned by Professional Ocean Service Corp. a company that provides aircraft cleaning services the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office told the Associated Press. The deceased were identified as Rolando Aleman Leon aged 55 Yoel Rodriguez Naranjo aged 53 Julio C. Pineda aged 75 Carlos Acosta Fajardo aged 53 and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo aged 47. Five additional people sustained injuries in the crash and ensuing fire according to authorities. The two pilots aboard the aircraft escaped without serious harm the National Transportation Safety Board confirmed.
The plane registered as N1997A had operated as a passenger aircraft for multiple international carriers before its conversion to freighter configuration in 2015 and subsequent lease to 21 Air in early 2025 according to flight tracking information compiled by Flightradar24 and reported by Aerotime. The Miami-based carrier 21 Air was flying the jet on behalf of Amazon Prime Air at the time of the accident its chief executive Keith Winters said in a statement relayed by The New York Times. The company expressed that it was devastated by the accident and was fully cooperating with federal investigators. Amazon issued its own statement through director of corporate communications Kelly Nantel saying the company was heartbroken by the loss of life and was cooperating with authorities while extending sympathies to all affected families.
Captain Joseph Carol aged 55 held more than 7 000 flight hours and had been type-rated on the Boeing 767 only since May while first officer Jaime Felipe Silva Molina aged 37 had logged 2 500 hours with certification in April 2025 the National Transportation Safety Board disclosed through details shared with CNN. Both pilots are scheduled for interviews as the investigation proceeds with a complete voice recorder transcript to be released later the safety board said. The NTSB has launched a detailed aircraft performance study to examine all factors including crew decision-making and systems operation according to its preliminary timeline. Federal Aviation Administration runway safety data reviewed in connection with prior overrun events highlight such incidents as a persistent category of approach and landing accidents the agency has tracked over multiple years.
The National Transportation Safety Board continues to gather information on weather conditions at the time which included gusty winds and to assess airline procedures at 21 Air. Earlier NTSB reviews had examined 11 similar runway overruns between 2008 and 2022 prompting updated guidance on wet runway performance the safety board has referenced in past assessments. No determination of probable cause has been issued and the investigation remains in its early stages according to statements from NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy reported across multiple outlets including the Associated Press.
