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Attorneys for the victims of last month’s fatal Amazon crash blasted the company and its operator after federal investigators revealed potential pilot error in preliminary findings, saying the deadly accident could have been “100% preventable.”
Mark Lopez-Trigo and Joshua Padron spoke to Fox Business on behalf of the sons of Julio Pineda, the 75-year-old man who was killed when the cargo jet overshot the runway during landing, crashed through the airport perimeter road and slammed into the van he was riding in. Pineda was one of five people killed in the crash.
The attorneys said the incident marked a major breakdown in crew scheduling and safety-pairing protocols, claiming the two pilots had limited experience flying the Boeing 767 compared with their overall experience operating jets.
“Despite his previous experience with military aircrafts, this is a completely different animal,” Lopez-Trigo said. “It’s a completely different plane.”
VICTIMS IDENTIFIED IN FATAL AMAZON CARGO JET CRASH AT MIAMI AIRPORT
According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the captain had only 150 flight hours piloting a Boeing 767 out of about 7,267 total hours of experience. The first officer had 800 hours operating the same model out of about 2,800 total flight hours.
The pilots, who regulators said flew together for the first time on the day of the crash, should never have been paired together, according to the attorneys.
“One of the most blaring things has to do with the credentials of the pilots, the pairing of the pilots, and why they were chosen to be paired together for that flight, having never flown together previously until that day,” Lopez-Trigo said.
AMAZON CARGO PLANE OVERRUNS MIAMI AIRPORT RUNWAY AND STRIKES ‘MULTIPLE’ VEHICLES; 5 DEAD, 5 INJURED
According to the NTSB, the first officer also repeatedly cautioned the captain about excessive speed, but the captain failed to act on or acknowledge the warnings, even as the plane triggered multiple automated warning-system alerts.
“They didn’t just miss once, twice, or three times — they missed more than five or six times mandatory go-arounds where they could have prevented this,” Padron said.
The attorneys claimed that the flight crew made several critical errors during landing, including approaching the runway too high and too fast and failing to deploy key deceleration systems.
“The reverse thrusters were never applied in order to be able to safely land the plane,” Lopez-Trigo said.
Padron and Lopez-Trigo said 21 Air is liable for poor crew-pairing policies, inadequate vetting and training, and allegedly putting under-experienced pilots into the rotation.
They further blasted Amazon, claiming the company failed to properly vet 21 Air’s safety standards and crew-qualification policies before hiring it as a cargo carrier, calling the alleged failure an “egregious error.”
“The company whose name was brandished all across this plane, the company who trusted 21 Air to fly this plane and deliver the goods, Amazon should have vetted this company prior to using them to deliver their goods. And in that vetting process, they would have found out everything that we know today,” Lopez-Trigo said.
“All of these people have individual liability in the case, and they all play a part, almost like the domino effect between point A and point B being the crash,” Lopez-Trigo said.
As a result of the incident, the Pineda family lost a loved one in the “blink of an eye,” the attorneys said.
“This is a situation where somebody who was extremely important to them was taken away in a second. And so they’re extremely sad. They want answers,” Lopez-Trigo said.
In a statement to Fox Business, Amazon said the loss of life and injuries from the incident “weighs heavily on all of us.”
“Our hearts continue to be with the families and loved ones of those who died or were injured, and with the entire Miami-Dade community. We remain committed to supporting the NTSB’s ongoing investigation and ask that any questions related to it be directed to them,” spokesperson Kelly Nantel said.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMZN | AMAZON.COM INC. | 256.29 | +4.89 | +1.95% |
Operator 21 Air added that safety management is a core focus of the company and that the airline is working to support everyone affected by the crash, including “providing resources to those who were injured, the loved ones of those who lost their lives, and our colleagues and commercial partner.”
“Our executive leadership team is actively engaged in managing operational risk and fostering a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. We encourage employees at every level to raise concerns and share feedback, and we incorporate those insights into our operations and decision-making. In some cases, that feedback has led to policies and procedures that exceed requirements, reflecting our commitment to the safe and reliable operation of our airline,” 21 Air said.
“We are reviewing the information in the NTSB preliminary report closely, alongside our own internal safety and operational protocols, and we will take all appropriate action to improve our safety based on the facts as they are established.”
