Amazon plane’s black box reveals strange sequence of events
(CNN) — New information from the flight data recorder onboard the crashed Amazon Air Boeing 767-300 paints a detailed picture – and raises questions – about what happened in the cockpit as the plane careened off a runway at Miami International Airport on Sunday. The 230,000-pound cargo jet, operated for Amazon by contractor 21 Air, hurtled past the end of the runway and slammed into a van full of cleaning workers, an airport fence, concrete vehicle barriers and an SUV before finally stopping and catching fire. Five people in the van were killed. On Wednesday, investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board will interview the pilots of the crashed plane as well as 21 Air’s assistant chief pilot, NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said Tuesday evening. The NTSB is also expected to share details of what pilots said in the moments leading up to the crash, according to the cockpit voice recorder. Investigators recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder – often called “the black boxes” – from the tail of the crashed jet and successfully accessed the data at their lab in Washington, Homendy said in a news conference Tuesday. More than 400 streams of data were captured by the black boxes. The data released Tuesday night by the NTSB illustrates an unusual sequence of events leading up to the plane going off the runway. Thirty seconds before the recording ended, as the plane was going more than 180 mph, two of the landing gears – the back right and nose wheels – touched down on the runway, Chihoon Shin, the NTSB investigator in charge, said Tuesday. The third set of landing gear – on the back left of the plane – didn’t touch down until nine seconds later. Aircraft are designed – and pilots are trained – to touch down with their back wheels first. Fifteen seconds before the recording ended – as the plane was traveling nearly 140 mph – the brakes on the wheels were released, and the throttles were moved to full take-off power. Four seconds later, the throttles were brought back to idle, and the brakes were reapplied. The five people killed in the van all worked for Professional Ocean Service Corp., a contract cleaning company for airlines, Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said Tuesday. The victims were identified as Rolando Aleman Leon, 55; Yoel Rodriguez Naranjo, 53; Julio C. Pineda, 75; Carlos Acosta Fajardo, 53 and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo, 47, the sheriff’s office said.
Global oil prices hit $100 per barrel as Middle East conflict roils markets
New York (CNN) — Global oil prices are back at $100 per barrel, rising to their highest levels since July as fighting in the Middle East raises concerns about prolonged disruptions to oil supply. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 2.8% Wednesday and traded at $100 per barrel for the first time since July. US crude oil rose 2.9% to hit $95.70 per barrel, its highest level since June. Brent hit $100 per barrel early Wednesday after a day of conflict and war developments Tuesday that included the US striking Iranian oil tankers and earlier saw the Iran-backed Houthis attack Saudi Arabia. Oil prices have been on a rollercoaster this year, oscillating as traders react to flare-ups in fighting and monitor oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. All told, Brent and US crude are each up more than 60% this year, raising the cost of energy across the globe. The rise in oil prices has pushed up the price of oil products from gasoline to diesel, hitting consumers’ wallets and putting inflation in focus for central banks. The surge in oil prices this year has been accompanied by a rise in gas and diesel prices, putting more pressure on consumers. The average price of gasoline surged by 7.3 cents per gallon on Wednesday, the biggest one-day increase since May 1, according to AAA data. US gas prices are now averaging $4.22 per gallon — the highest level since June 4. By comparison, gas prices were just $3.19 at this point last year and $2.98 before the war with Iran started.
Normally, gas prices cool off as Labor Day weekend marks the end of the high-demand summer driving season. However, this year Labor Day gas prices were the highest on record.
US-Iran tanker attacks signal potentially dangerous new phase in war
At least seven oil tankers have been struck in and beyond the Persian Gulf since Tuesday evening local time, as the United States and Iran step up tanker attacks in what could mark a dangerous new phase in the war. Late Tuesday, the US military struck five Iranian tankers, sinking one, after Iran fired ballistic missiles at a US Navy warship. Four crude oil carriers in the Gulf of Oman and one near Kharg Island – a hub for Iranian oil exports in the Persian Gulf – were struck, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. One of the ships, identified as the M/T Riesco, is seen on fire and sinking in the Gulf of Oman in a video posted to X by the military. US forces instructed the crews of the vessels they targeted to abandon ship prior to striking, CENTCOM said. Iran retaliated by firing a barrage of missiles toward regional US ally Jordan, saying it was targeting Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, a key facility used by US forces. The Jordanian army said its air defenses dealt with 20 ballistic missiles, 18 of them successfully destroyed, with two falling in unpopulated areas. On Wednesday, two tankers in the Gulf were struck by drones. One was off Dubai’s coast, the other in Iraqi waters.
Colorado judge orders bond increased to $10M for murder suspect Morphew
BOULDER COUNTY, Colorado (KCNC) — A Colorado judge ordered an increase in bond for murder suspect Barry Morphew on Tuesday after he was arrested by Boulder County Sheriff’s deputies last week. Morphew’s bond was increased from $3 million to $10 million cash only. In court, the judge said that she decided to modify Morphew’s bond because of his “capacity to commit new offenses while on bond.” She said that Morphew’s actions made it clear that he didn’t have any “respect for the court” and that “he isn’t going to comply with it if it is inconvenient to the lifestyle he wishes to live while out on bond.” Morphew was arrested Sept. 3 in unincorporated Boulder County on an Alamosa County warrant for failure to comply. The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said deputies located and arrested him at approximately 9:11 p.m. He was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Boulder County Jail. The arrest came just hours after prosecutors filed a verified application asking the court to issue a warrant and modify Morphew’s bond. In an order signed Sept. 3, the judge granted that request, writing that a bench warrant should issue and setting bond at $3 million cash only with nationwide extradition. The order also set a bond hearing for Sept. 8 where Morphew appeared in person, in chains and wearing a white and orange striped shirt and pants. The judge increased his bond to $10 million cash only. Morphew is awaiting trial on a charge of first-degree murder after deliberation in the death of his wife, Suzanne Morphew. He has pleaded not guilty and has denied killing her.
‘Gambling with our lives’: Another AI employee quits over safety concerns
(CNN) — “The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade.” That blunt admission from former Anthropic employee Jacob Coxon made waves Tuesday, as the just-quit 27-year-old AI researcher spilled the beans on his way out the door in a resignation thread on X. As alarming and serious as Coxon’s revelations sound (“These will soon be superhuman systems that can hack anything, revolutionize any field overnight, and acquire real power and resources”), they’re also not new. Anthropic got its start in exactly this way, as OpenAI employees concerned about the company’s safety protocols left Sam Altman’s startup to launch their own AI company, arguing their approach was more responsible. The concerns are becoming commonplace. A number of AI employees have loudly quit their companies over safety concerns over the past several months and years. Others have publicly voiced worries that the technology is moving too quickly and will one day outpace humans’ ability to control it. In July, nearly 1,400 AI company employees signed an open letter urging the US government to regulate the technology to rein in Big Tech and slow the pace of AI to ensure its safety. And two days ago, OpenAI Chief Scientist Jakub Pachocki warned that AI capabilities are advancing faster than researchers’ ability to reliably monitor and control them.
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