New details on the Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami airport
Investigators have released a second-by-second timeline of the deadly Amazon cargo jet crash, and it points to a plane that landed too fast and ran out of runway — bad news for the 21 Air operation and for questions about crew experience.
- The jet touched down about 25 mph faster than normal after the wind flipped from a headwind to a tailwind right at landing.
- Fifteen seconds before impact the crew released the brakes and pushed the throttles up to abort the landing and go around.
- Big jet engines take several seconds to build thrust, so the plane actually lost speed instead of gaining it, and the go-around was called off.
- The NTSB says the reverse thrusters and the wing spoilers that help slow the plane were never used.
- The jet went off the end of the runway and hit a van at highway speed, killing five people; the captain had only been qualified on the type for four months.
Outlook: The cockpit voice recording is due next, which should show what the crew was reacting to in the final seconds and whether crew pairing rules come under scrutiny.