Atlas Air Flight 3591
Atlas Air Flight 3591 was a scheduled domestic cargo flight under the Amazon Air banner between Miami International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. On February 23, 2019, the Boeing 767-375ER(BCF) used for this flight crashed into Trinity Bay during approach into Houston, killing the two crew members and a single passenger on board. The accident occurred near Anahuac, Texas, east of Houston, shortly before 12:45 CST (18:45 UTC). This was the first fatal crash of a Boeing 767 freighter.
N1217A, the aircraft involved in the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | February 23, 2019 |
| Summary | Crashed into shallow bay during approach |
| Site | Trinity Bay; near Anahuac, Texas 29°45′50″N 94°42′53″W |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 767-375(ER)(BCF) |
| Aircraft name | CustomAir Obsession |
| Operator | Atlas Air under Amazon Air banner |
| IATA flight No. | 5Y3591 |
| ICAO flight No. | GTI3591 |
| Call sign | GIANT 3591 |
| Registration | N1217A |
| Flight origin | Miami International Airport, Miami, Florida, United States |
| Destination | George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston, Texas, United States |
| Occupants | 3 |
| Passengers | 1 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Fatalities | 3 |
| Survivors | 0 |
Investigators attributed the accident to pilot error, finding that the first officer experienced spatial disorientation and inadvertently placed the aircraft in an unrecoverable dive, while the captain failed to adequately monitor the first officer's actions and the flight path of the aircraft. Flight crew training issues at Atlas Air and across the U.S. commercial aviation industry were also implicated.