Flight recorders recovered from Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami airport

On a Sunday afternoon just before two o'clock, a Boeing 767-300 cargo plane operated by 21 Air came in to land at Miami International Airport and did not stop. The aircraft, arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico, overshot the runway and kept moving across the tarmac, striking a white Ford van belonging to a contract cleaning company—which was carrying seven people—before punching through the airport's perimeter fence and colliding with a Toyota Corolla carrying three passengers. When it finally came to rest, the plane had traveled roughly 1,300 feet beyond where the runway ended. Five people were killed. Five others were seriously hurt. The scene, according to Jennifer Homendy, the chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, was devastating—aircraft debris, vehicle wreckage, and sections of airport fencing scattered across the ground.

Homendy spoke to reporters on Monday morning at Miami International Airport, her first public statement since the crash. The aircraft had two crew members on board and was making its third flight of the day when it attempted to land. She made clear that while investigators had recovered both the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder—the black boxes that hold the technical and audio record of what happened in the final moments—the immediate work was not about understanding cause. It was about recovering the dead. "The investigation and access to the aircraft, as well as evidence, can wait," she said. The recorders were being transported to NTSB headquarters for analysis, but Homendy stressed that it was far too early to say anything definitive about what brought the plane down. The agency was still in what she called the "fact finding stage."

What investigators will examine is extensive. They will review the flight history, the experience and training of the crew, radar data, and how the aircraft performed during its approach and landing. Separate teams will scrutinize the plane's systems and engines. A meteorologist will assess the weather at the moment of landing. And critically, the NTSB will investigate whether the runway was equipped with an engineered materials arresting system—an EMAS—designed specifically to slow and stop aircraft that overshoot. Homendy identified this as a "key" part of the investigation. BBC Verify's analysis found that an active thunderstorm was near the airport shortly before the crash, with wind gusts reaching 26 knots, roughly 48 kilometers per hour.

The crash occurred during the Labor Day holiday weekend, one of the busiest travel periods in the United States. Two of the airport's four runways remained closed in the aftermath, and passengers were warned to expect continued disruption. Sunday's cancellations had already stranded aircraft and crews. Amazon, which operates cargo services through contracted carriers like 21 Air, said it was "heartbroken" by the loss of life and was working with authorities. The airline operating the plane expressed its condolences and pledged cooperation with investigators.

Homendy concluded her remarks with a statement about what comes after the investigation concludes. The NTSB will issue safety recommendations—that is its mandate, she said. "That's why we're here—to prevent the next tragedy." But recommendations, she added, mean nothing if they are not implemented. "Our recommendations must be implemented, or we'll be here again." The agency has also asked the public to submit any photographs or videos that might help piece together what happened in those final seconds before impact.