[1][4] The final report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the probable cause of the accident was the inability of the captain, because of his use of monovision contact lenses, to overcome his misperception of the aircraft's position relative to the runway during the visual portion of the approach.

He held and airline transport pilot (ATP) certificate with airplane single-engine land privileges, and MD-88 and Cessna 500 type ratings.

The CVR recorded the sound of the ground proximity warning system (GPWS) announcing minimums.

According to the CVR transcript, the captain began to reduce the engine power, and the first officer stated, "Nose up."

[8] The right wing of the airplane struck the approach light structure in Flushing Bay and the vertical edge of the concrete runway deck, and then skidded approximately 2,700 feet down the 7,000 ft. runway 13 on its lower fuselage and nose landing gear before it came to a stop.

According to flight and cabin crewmember statements, after the airplane came to a stop, the pilots began to assess the damage to the airplane and determine whether an emergency evacuation was warranted, while the flight attendants picked up their interphone handsets and awaited instructions.

About 74 seconds after the airplane came to a stop (about 94 seconds after impact), the captain issued the emergency evacuation command after a non-revenue Delta pilot and Jennifer Teas, the Flight Attendant In Charge (FAIC) reported that they smelled jet fuel fumes in the cabin, as 600 gallons of jet fuel leaked from the aircraft's right wing.

[1] The NTSB investigated into the accident, and determined that the probable cause was due to the inability of the captain, because of his use of monovision contact lenses, to overcome his misperception of the airplane’s position relative to the runway during the visual portion of the approach.