As an Amazon cargo plane began its descent under dark clouds over Miami International Airport on Sunday afternoon, it flew past the usual landing zone for Runway 30.
The Boeing 767-300, weighing more than 100 tons, remained airborne deep into the runway – its left rear gear continuing to bounce along the pavement, which rapidly disappeared ahead. By the time it reached the runway’s end, the jet was still barreling forward at 130 mph, tracking data from Flightradar24 showed.
Data from the flight data recorder, which had about 55 hours of information, shows that seconds before the crash, the throttles were set to full power, according to Chihoon Shin, the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigator in charge.
There were no indications that speed brakes or thrust reversers were deployed during the incident, the NTSB noted. Both systems are designed to slow a plane: speed brakes by using aerodynamic surfaces and thrust reversers by diverting air from the engine.
On its third flight of the day, the aircraft hurtled across a small grassy patch, then through a chain-link fence with razor wire. Concrete barriers designed to keep cars out of the secure area crumbled as the jet headed straight for a four-lane road.
