At Least 5 Killed As Amazon Prime Air Cargo Plane Crashes In Miami

At least five people were killed on Sunday when an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane overran a runway while landing at Miami International Airport and crashed into several vehicles on the ground, local officials said.

Prime Air Flight 7598 overran the airport’s diagonal runway shortly before 2 p.m. EDT and struck multiple vehicles, officials said during a news conference.

Five other people were injured, including three who were in critical condition, Miami-Dade Fire Chief Ray Jadallah said. At least two people were trapped inside vehicles hit by the aircraft, while the pilot and co-pilot were trapped inside the plane following the crash.

Officials did not immediately release the identities of those who died.

More than 60 emergency response units and approximately 200 personnel were deployed to the scene, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said. Rescue crews were still dealing with an active fuel leak from the aircraft later in the afternoon.

The airport suspended all flights immediately after the crash, although two of its four runways had reopened by Sunday evening.

The aircraft, which had departed from San Juan, Puerto Rico, was a 32-year-old Boeing 767-300 freighter operated by 21 Air on behalf of Amazon. According to flight-tracking service Flightradar24, the aircraft had previously been used as a passenger jet by several airlines between 1994 and 2015.

Reuters photographs from the scene showed the aircraft with its nose on the ground and its tail raised into the air. Scorch marks were visible on the right side of the plane.

Flightradar24 said the aircraft was traveling at about 112 knots, or 129 mph, when it left the usable runway.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which investigates civil aviation accidents, has sent a team led by Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy to investigate the crash. The agency is expected to hold its first media briefing in Miami on Monday.

Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said the company was still gathering information about the incident and was working closely with local authorities to determine what happened.

“Our absolute priority is the safety, well-being, and care of everyone involved,” Nantel said.

Boeing and 21 Air said they would support the government investigation.

The crash was not the first fatal accident involving an Amazon Prime Air-operated aircraft. In February 2019, Atlas Air Flight 3591, a Boeing 767-300 freighter operating for Amazon Prime Air, crashed into Trinity Bay in Texas after entering a rapid descent while flying from Miami to Houston. All three people aboard were killed.