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The incident occurred just before 2 p.m. local time when Prime Air Flight 7598 arriving from San Juan in Puerto Rico failed to stop on the diagonal runway and careened into ground traffic Miami-Dade County officials said at a news conference. The crash sparked a fire that sent black smoke billowing into the sky with video footage showing the Amazon-branded aircraft resting off the runway amid emergency vehicles. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue dispatched more than 60 units and approximately 200 personnel to the scene where they worked to extinguish the blaze and manage a fuel leak from the wreckage the department reported.
Emergency responders found multiple people trapped including the pilot and copilot inside the aircraft as well as at least two individuals in the struck vehicles according to Fire Chief Raied Jadallah. Five people sustained injuries in addition to the fatalities with three of the injured listed in critical condition and transported to a trauma center. Authorities have withheld the identities of those killed pending notification of next of kin officials stated during the afternoon briefing.
In a statement Amazon confirmed that the plane was operated by cargo carrier 21 Air on its behalf and expressed that it was gathering details on the fast-moving situation. 21 Air separately posted on its website that it was devastated by the accident involving one of its aircraft in Miami. The company which flies primarily Boeing 767-300 models capable of carrying 55 tons also provides services to DHL in addition to its Amazon contract a New York Times report detailing the operator noted.
The crash forced the immediate closure of all runways and taxiways at Miami International Airport one of the busiest in the United States leading to widespread flight delays and cancellations during the Labor Day weekend travel period. By late afternoon two of the four runways had reopened but passengers faced average delays exceeding six hours the Federal Aviation Administration indicated. Flight tracking data showed at least 187 cancellations and 266 delays at the airport for the day The New York Times reported citing FlightAware.
Amazon Air maintains a network of roughly 105 contracted aircraft to support its global shipping operations with 21 Air responsible for eight of those planes according to aviation data firm Cirium as cited by The New York Times. The particular Boeing 767-300 involved was manufactured in 1994 and had previously served as a passenger jet until 2015 before conversion to cargo use flight tracking service Flightradar24 data revealed. Such aircraft often remain in service for decades under cargo operators due to rigorous maintenance schedules the newspaper explained.
The event bore similarities to a 1997 cargo plane crash at the same airport that also claimed five lives when a DC-8 operated by Fine Air Services stalled after takeoff crossed a highway and exploded in a parking lot a separate New York Times article recalled. In that earlier case improper cargo loading was determined to be the cause by the National Transportation Safety Board leading to obstruction of justice pleas by involved companies. Investigators from federal agencies will examine the circumstances surrounding Sunday’s overrun including reported gusty winds at the time to determine contributing factors.
