The latest information released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the United States indicates that before the fatal accident involving Amazon Prime Air Flight 7598 at Miami International Airport on Sunday, September 6, one pilot repeatedly warned the other pilot that the aircraft was “too fast” during the final approach and landing.
The identities of the pilots have been confirmed as 55-year-old Captain Joseph Carroll and 37-year-old First Officer Jaime Felipe Silva Molina, both from the cargo airline 21 Air. 21 Air is a cargo airline based in Greensboro, North Carolina, which started close cooperation with Amazon at the end of 2024, operating some of Amazon’s Boeing 767 freighters.
NTSB has not determined which pilot issued the warning as the aircraft approached Miami International Airport on Sunday and which pilot received the warning. According to NTSB’s summary of the cockpit voice recorder, the warning lasted for nearly two minutes, but the pilot who received the warning never made a “verbal response consistent with it”.
Flight data recorders show that the aircraft was unstable during the approach in strong winds. After landing, the pilots briefly increased the throttle and released the brakes in an attempt to take off again, but abandoned this operation after about four seconds.
The cockpit voice recorder also documented a series of automatic warnings, with repeated alerts of “sink rate” and “too low terrain” while the aircraft was descending towards the runway. Data from FlightRadar24 indicates that the Amazon aircraft first landed on runway 30, which is 9360 feet long at the airport, with a landing point about 5000 feet from the ground, leaving less than half of the runway available to stop.
NTSB has stated that the aircraft was in an unstable attitude during landing, with the pilots briefly attempting to take off again, braking again, and then running off the runway for about 1,300 feet, colliding with a truck, resulting in the death of all five people inside the vehicle.
NTSB Chairman Jennifer Homendy stated on Tuesday that the five victims were members of the airport aircraft cleaning crew. Five people were injured, with two in critical condition as of Tuesday. According to the Associated Press, the injured pilots have been discharged from the hospital after treatment and were questioned by investigators on Wednesday.
As the investigation is still ongoing, the full transcript of the cockpit conversation has not been released.
NTSB stated on Tuesday that the critical brake system of the aircraft did not engage during the accident.