Amazon announced on September 13, 2026, that it would pause operations with cargo carrier 21 Air following the fatal Boeing 767 freighter runway overrun at Miami International Airport (MIA) on September 6. The accident killed five people on the ground and injured five others.
In a statement, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said the company had spent the days since the accident supporting the investigation and reviewing surrounding circumstances before deciding to "pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598." Amazon emphasized the move is a commercial step, not a regulatory action, and neither company has linked it to any investigative finding. Amazon holds no air operator certificate for these flights and purchases lift from certificated carriers such as 21 Air.
According to a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigative update published September 9, Flight 7598 was a Part 121 cargo service from San Juan (SJU) to Miami. Flight data recorder data shows the nose and right main landing gear touched down at a groundspeed of 158 knots, brakes were applied at 146 knots, and the left main gear touched down at 134 knots. Brakes were then released at 120 knots as throttles were advanced to a setting consistent with go-around thrust, before being returned to idle with brakes reapplied at 117 knots. The final recorded groundspeed was 65 knots, with no indication that speed brakes or thrust reversers had deployed.
The cockpit voice recorder captured one pilot warning that the aircraft was too fast approximately one minute and 40 seconds before the recording ended, repeating the concern through to the end with no consistent verbal response. The NTSB described both recorder summaries as preliminary and subject to change.
The aircraft, a Boeing 767-300 freighter operated by 21 Air for Amazon Air, overran Runway 30, breached the airport perimeter, and struck vehicles on a public road. Five people on the ground were killed and five injured. 21 Air, headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, began flying Boeing 767s for Amazon Air in 2024 and also operates for other customers including DHL.
21 Air stated it remains focused on supporting affected families and collaborating with the NTSB and partners, expressing confidence in its safety policies, procedures, and training. Other contracted carriers continue to operate across the Amazon Air Cargo network, which includes more than 100 aircraft flying over 250 daily flights across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
The NTSB has not determined the probable cause of the accident. Amazon has not specified the duration of the pause or whether the relationship with 21 Air will resume after the investigation or its own review concludes.