NTSB: Amazon Prime Air 767 Overran Miami Runway, Killing 5

A Boeing 767 cargo aircraft operated for Amazon Prime Air crashed in Miami after overrunning the runway, and cockpit voice recordings show one pilot warned more than a minute before touchdown that the speed was "too fast," the US National Transportation Safety Board said in an investigative update released on Wednesday. The pilot continued to comment on the aircraft's speed as automated cockpit warnings sounded, while the other pilot gave no clear verbal response. The update did not identify which pilot was the captain and which was the first officer.

The 32-year-old Boeing 767, operated by Miami-based 21 Air, overran the runway by about 1,300 feet (396 metres) and struck two vehicles on the ground, killing five people and injuring five. Information released by the NTSB shows that before touchdown, a "sink rate" warning sounded twice in the cockpit, and the aircraft at one point descended 400 feet in four seconds, followed by five "terrain" warnings.

The board said that 15 seconds after touchdown, one of the pilots called for a go-around and the engine throttles were advanced to a level consistent with go-around thrust. By then the aircraft was near the end of the runway and still travelling at 120 knots (138 miles per hour), a figure from the NTSB's preliminary disclosures. Four seconds later, however, the throttles were pulled back to idle, followed by sounds consistent with the aircraft leaving the paved surface of the runway. The board said on Tuesday that recorded data showed no use of spoilers or thrust reversers to help slow the aircraft.

Investigators spent most of Wednesday interviewing the captain and first officer before releasing details from the cockpit voice recording. The aircraft was operating its third flight of the day, having departed from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Earlier that day it had flown from Cincinnati to Miami, then from Miami to San Juan, before crashing at 1:53 pm EDT (17:53 GMT). The board said on Tuesday that the 55-year-old captain obtained a Boeing 767 type rating in May and had 7,145 flight hours, while the 37-year-old first officer obtained the type rating in April 2025 and had 2,655 flight hours.