Amazon Cargo Plane Skids Off Miami Runway Without Deploying Thrust Reversers
An Amazon cargo plane that overran a runway at Miami International Airport on Sunday killed five people and injured five others. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday that the plane, operated by 21 Air on behalf of Amazon, did not deploy its thrust reversers or speed brakes before skidding off the end of the runway.
According to NTSB investigator Chihoon Shin, there was no indication that these critical systems were deployed. The flight data recorder showed that about 15 seconds before the plane's recording ended, the throttle increased to values consistent with go-around thrust, but the pilots chose not to perform a go-around.
Shin emphasized that it is too soon to determine what this data points to and why the thrust reversers and speed brakes were not deployed. The NTSB will conduct an aircraft performance study to determine if there was anything abnormal with the plane's systems or behavior.