NTSB: Pilot Warned of Excessive Speed Before Amazon Cargo Plane Overran Miami Runway

One pilot aboard the Amazon Prime Air cargo plane that crashed near Miami International Airport last Sunday warned that the aircraft was flying "too fast" more than a minute before it overran the runway, according to details released Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board.

The other pilot did not give a clear verbal response to that warning, the NTSB said in an investigative update that did not identify either speaker as the captain or first officer.

The 32-year-old Boeing 767, operated by Miami-based 21 Air, overran the runway by approximately 1,300 feet and struck two vehicles on the ground, killing five people and injuring five others.

Automated cockpit warnings compounded the pilot's verbal caution. The alert "sink rate sink rate" sounded twice as the aircraft descended 400 feet in just four seconds, followed by five separate warnings of "too low terrain," according to the NTSB's update.

Fifteen seconds after the plane touched down, one of the pilots called to abort the landing and the engine throttles were advanced to a level consistent with go-around thrust. At that point, the aircraft was approaching the end of the runway while still traveling at 120 knots — approximately 138 miles per hour — according to data from Flightradar24 based on initial NTSB disclosures.

Four seconds later, the throttles were reduced to idle power. Sounds consistent with the plane departing the runway's paved surface followed shortly after, the NTSB said. The board also noted on Tuesday that recorded data showed no indication that speed brakes or thrust reversers were deployed to help slow the aircraft.

"The big question is, why did they continue their approach?" said Anthony Brickhouse, an aerospace safety consultant. "They had several cues that their approach was not stable, but they continued instead of going around."

Brickhouse also cited a breakdown in crew resource management — a category of pilot training focused on clear communication and coordinated cockpit decision-making. "As an investigator, I want to know with that many cues available, what was their motivation? What was their thought process? Why did they continue that approach instead of going around?" he said.

NTSB investigators spent much of Wednesday interviewing both the captain and first officer before releasing the cockpit voice recorder details. 21 Air did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the information the NTSB released.

The flight was the crew's third of the day. The aircraft had flown from Cincinnati to Miami and from Miami to San Juan, Puerto Rico, before the return leg that ended in the crash at 1:53 p.m. EDT on Sunday.

The captain, 55, received his type rating for the 767 in May and has logged 7,145 total flight hours, the NTSB said Tuesday. The first officer, 37, received his 767 type rating in April 2025 and has 2,655 flight hours.

Safety experts caution that aviation accidents typically result from multiple contributing factors. The NTSB's investigation remains ongoing, and the agency is expected to conduct a thorough review of maintenance records, crew scheduling, air traffic control communications, and operational procedures at 21 Air before issuing final findings.