Amazon Pauses Cargo Flights With 21 Air Following Fatal Miami Runway Crash

E-commerce giant Amazon has officially suspended its operational partnership with cargo airline 21 Air following a deadly runway excursion at Miami International Airport that left five people dead. The decision to halt flight operations with the North Carolina-based logistics carrier comes as federal investigators scrutinize the circumstances surrounding the fatal September 6 crash.

The accident involved a Boeing 767 freighter operating as Flight 7598, which was carrying Amazon packages when it attempted to land at the South Florida hub. According to aviation reports, the widebody cargo jet touched down at a dangerously high speed and was unable to bring itself to a safe stop before running out of paved runway.

Unable to halt its forward momentum, the heavy cargo plane careened roughly 1,300 feet (396 meters) past the end of the designated runway strip. The runaway jet then violently collided with a ground vehicle that was transporting airport personnel across the airfield perimeter.

Emergency officials and airport authorities confirmed that the vehicle struck by the aircraft belonged to a local plane cleaning company. All five individuals who lost their lives in the catastrophe were inside the cleaning crew's transport van at the moment of impact. An additional five people suffered injuries in the collision and the chaotic aftermath that followed.

Amazon moved to sever its day-to-day flight operations with the carrier on Sunday, issuing a formal statement outlining its ongoing coordination with safety regulators and its commitment to the families of those harmed.

"After the tragic incident last weekend, we've spent time supporting the investigation and reviewing some of the surrounding circumstances, and we've decided to pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598," said Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel. She added that the retail company will continue working directly to assist federal authorities and support everyone impacted by the tragedy.

Headquartered in North Carolina, 21 Air had been contracted to fly freight and haul packages across Amazon’s rapid fulfillment distribution network since 2024. When reached for comment on Sunday regarding Amazon's decision to pause flight operations, representatives for 21 Air did not immediately issue a public response.

In the meantime, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has taken charge of the comprehensive federal investigation into the deadly excursion. The independent agency's inquiry is covering a wide spectrum of operational elements, including the airline’s internal protocols, flight crew qualifications, airport weather conditions at the time of arrival, full maintenance logs, and the aircraft’s extended ownership records.

Preliminary flight data and cockpit voice findings published by the NTSB on September 9 shed light on the tense moments that unfolded inside the cockpit during the final phases of the flight. Investigators revealed that one of the pilots repeatedly warned the other that the aircraft was traveling far too fast during its initial approach toward the Miami runway.

Those urgent warnings regarding excessive speed did not cease when the wheels made contact with the runway surface. According to the NTSB's early disclosures, the pilot continued to caution that the freighter was moving too rapidly even after touchdown had already taken place, highlighting serious deceleration problems on the tarmac.

Federal investigators also discovered that the aircraft’s automated safety instruments were repeatedly triggered during the landing attempt. The cockpit audio recording captured several computerized alerts warning the flight crew about the jet’s excessive rate of descent as well as its immediate proximity to the approaching terrain.

While these preliminary audio excerpts have provided crucial early details about the flight deck environment in the moments preceding the disaster, the NTSB confirmed that a full, official transcript of the crew’s entire recorded conversation will not be released until a later stage in the investigative process.

The aircraft at the center of the incident had a long operational history spanning more than three decades. According to data provided by the flight-tracking service Flightradar24, the Boeing 767 was 32 years old at the time it overshot the Miami runway.

Records show that the jetliner was originally manufactured to serve commercial passenger routes. It operated in the fleets of multiple foreign passenger airlines for more than two decades before being taken out of passenger service and undergoing a structural conversion into a dedicated cargo transport in 2015.

As federal investigators continue examining the wreckage, aircraft telemetry, and operational practices of 21 Air, the suspension marks a significant setback for the carrier’s cargo logistics business. For Amazon, the immediate priority remains supporting the ongoing federal investigation while re-evaluating the safety standards of third-party air contractors operating within its supply chain.