Investigators hunt for what went wrong after cargo plane crash in Miami kills at least 5

MIAMI (AP) — Federal investigators on Monday are detailing their plans for determining what caused an Amazon cargo jet to barrel off a runway at Miami International Airport, killing at least five people and injuring five others as it struck vehicles and was engulfed in flames.

The aircraft overran the runway around 2 p.m. Sunday after arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and plowed across a road used by warehouse workers and other businesses that surround the airport. Five people were killed, three critically injured and two others hospitalized with less severe injuries, officials said.

It wasn’t immediately clear if the pilots survived or those killed were all in vehicles when the plane struck.

The crash, which sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky, trapped the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and some occupants in cars, said Miami-Dade Rescue Fire Chief Ray Jadallah. The agency said crews also had to extricate a person who was trapped under a vehicle.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy would hold a news conference Monday.

Among the factors investigators are likely to consider is whether the plane flew too far before touching down, experts said. Typically, the landing zone is within the first 3,000 feet (914 meters) of a runway.

Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo said if it was beyond that area, the plane should have aborted the landing and gone around for another attempt.

Mary Schiavo, who is a pilot and former Inspector General of the Transportation Department, said video posted online shows the Amazon plane floating above the runway for an extended period without flaring the nose upward to force the main landing gear onto the ground.

It wasn’t raining at the time, but dark storm clouds loomed and strong winds were reported. Schiavo said that if the plane had a tail wind, that could have contributed to it floating further down the runway.

“A tail wind would certainly add to your troubles if you’ve already given up a good chunk of the runway by not touching down and landing right away,” Schiavo said.

The Miami airport is not equipped with arresting systems that the FAA says have been installed at more than 120 airports nationwide to safely stop planes that do go past the end of a runway. Those beds of lightweight, crushable material at the end of a runway have been credited by the FAA with helping save at least 497 lives aboard planes that overran runways.

The crash halted flights at the busy travel hub for much of the afternoon. Some 200 emergency personnel responded, finding the plane with heavy flames and smoke from a complex engine compartment fire, the department said. Firefighters used foam from specialized airport firefighting units to extinguish the fire, and crews were still dealing with a fuel leak on the plane hours later.

The Prime Air plane came to rest beside a roadway near two semitrucks, images showed. The aircraft appeared to be resting on its belly and was largely intact despite the fire.

The flight had been operated by 21 Air, a cargo carrier based in North Carolina. The 32-year-old Boeing 767 was originally built to carry passengers and flew for several airlines for more than two decades before being converted to a cargo plane in 2015, according to flight-tracking site Flightradar24.

Schiavo said the NTSB will also closely examine the maintenance history of this plane — particularly since it has a history of foreign ownership in the past, including by a Russian company.

More than 160 flights were canceled and nearly 325 delayed by late Sunday, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions. Officials from Orlando International Airport, more than 200 miles (320 km) north of Miami, said some flights were diverted there.

Amazon said in a statement that it would cooperate with any investigation.

“We’re heartbroken to learn that five people lost their lives in today’s incident at Miami International Airport," the company said. “Our deepest sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and all those affected by this devastating loss.”

Last year, a UPS plane crashed after losing its engine while accelerating down the runway at Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport. The crash killed all three pilots and 12 people on the ground. Twenty-three more were injured.

Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press writers Tim Reynolds in Miami, Rio Yamat in Las Vegas and Wufei Yu in Phoenix contributed.

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport (MIA) after it overshot the runway, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport (MIA) after it overshot the runway, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport (MIA) after it overshot the runway, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport (MIA) after it overshot the runway, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An Amazon cargo plane sits at the Miami International Airport (MIA) after it overshot the runway, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Germany on Monday will challenge claims at the United Nations’ top court that it is “facilitating” acts of genocide in Gaza by providing arms and other military support to Israel.

Nicaragua, which launched the case at the International Court of Justice, accuses Berlin of violating the Genocide Convention and international humanitarian law. While the case centers on Germany, it indirectly takes aim at Israel’s campaign in Gaza in response to the deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas.

Israel, which isn’t a party in the proceedings, strongly denies that its actions amount to acts of genocide.

Monday’s hearing at the court in The Hague will address questions raised by Germany over whether the court has jurisdiction in the case.

The conflict left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead and devastated the enclave. Despite a fragile ceasefire brokered by the United States last year, violence has continued. Since the ceasefire was announced, Israeli fire has killed more than 1,300 Palestinians in Gaza. Five Israeli soldiers have also been killed.

Germany has been a staunch supporter of Israel for decades and is the second-largest supplier of arms to Israel after the United States.

Berlin denies Nicaragua's allegations. The head of Germany’s legal team, Tania von Uslar-Gleichen, told judges during an earlier hearing that Nicaragua’s claims “have no basis in fact or law.”

Last year, Germany stopped authorizing any exports of military equipment to Israel that could be used in Gaza but later lifted those restrictions.

In 2024, the court rejected an emergency request from Nicaragua to order Germany to halt military and other aid to Israel in Gaza, but the 16-judge panel declined to throw out the case altogether.

The proceedings are the latest legal attempt to rein in Israel’s military campaign by a country with historic ties to the Palestinian people, after South Africa accused Israel of genocide at the same court in 2023.

In January 2024, judges at the ICJ ordered Israel to do all it can to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza. Two months later, the court told Israel to take measures to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, including opening more land crossings to allow food, water, fuel and other supplies.

South Africa says that Israel largely ignored those orders.

Both South Africa’s case against Israel and Nicaragua’s case against Germany allege violations of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The convention was drawn up in the wake of the Holocaust to codify a new crime: genocide.

A team of independent experts commissioned by the United Nations’ Human Rights Council and the largest professional organization of scholars studying genocide have both concluded that Israel is violating the treaty but only an international court can make a legal determination.

Proceedings at the ICJ can drag on for years. In 2007, the court ruled that Serbia “violated the obligation to prevent genocide” in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, when Bosnian Serb forces rounded up and murdered some 8,000 mostly Muslim men and boys in eastern Bosnia.

In May, the court set a November 2027 deadline for South Africa to file its written pleadings and gave Israel until May 2029 to reply. Hearings on the core question of the case — whether Israel committed genocide in Gaza — likely won’t be heard until late 2029 at the earliest.

In separate proceedings at the International Criminal Court, also in The Hague, which tries cases against individuals rather than between nations, judges have issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in connection with the conflict.

The pair are charged with crimes against humanity, not genocide. The court said it found that there was reason to believe they used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid and intentionally targeted civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza — charges Israeli officials deny.

In response, the United States has issued sanctions against many senior court staff, including nine of the ICC’s 18 judges.

FILE - The logo of the International Court of Justice displayed on the judges' bench, in The Hague, Netherlands, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)