Five Miami plane crash victims identified after Amazon jet ran off runway and slammed into van

All five people who died when an Amazon cargo jet ran off the runway at Miami International Airport were inside a shuttle van used by an aircraft cleaning crew, authorities say. The crash occurred during a landing attempt on Sunday when the aircraft hit the van on airport grounds, broke through a perimeter fence, and subsequently struck an SUV on a nearby city street. Five other people were injured.

Miami-Dade County Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said Tuesday that both the pilot and co-pilot have been released from the hospital, while two victims remain in critical condition and a third is in stable condition. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash, with a primary focus expected to center on the absence of specialized systems designed to slow and stop overshooting aircraft at the end of runways. Miami International Airport is not among the 120 airfields across the US equipped with lightweight, crushable materials that the Federal Aviation Administration says have saved around 500 lives.

Even without an engineered deceleration system, the airport appears to comply with federal rules because it maintains a 1,000-foot (305-meter) safety buffer beyond the end of its runways, according to aviation experts. NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy noted that while her agency aims to prevent such tragedies, runway overruns continue to occur despite previous safety recommendations. "Our recommendations must be implemented or we’re going to be here again," she said during a news conference on Monday.

Investigators have recovered the flight data recorder and are reviewing its information. Official interviews with the pilot, co-pilot, air traffic controllers, and other witnesses are being scheduled, Homendy said. Amazon released a statement expressing its full cooperation with the investigation, adding that its deepest sympathies are with the victims and their families.

The five victims were traveling in a van owned by Professional Ocean Service Corp., a company contracted to clean planes. The vendor stated it would refrain from commenting on the crash out of respect for the families of the victims. "Our employees are far more than the people who work beside us each day, they are family, and they are deeply loved.

Our hearts and prayers are with every employee and every family whose lives have been forever changed," the company said in a statement Tuesday. The sheriff identified the deceased as Rolando Aleman Leon, 55; Yoel Rodriguez Naranjo, 53; Julio C. Pineda, 75; Carlos Acosta Fajardo, 53; and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo, 47.