Online retailer Amazon said Sunday it was suspending its use of cargo carrier 21 Air after one of its Amazon-branded aircraft crashed upon landing in Miami this month, killing five people.
Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel did not divulge specific factors but said the decision came after the company reviewed some of the circumstances around the crash as it supported the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation into its cause.
“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,” Nantel said.
Amazon has said it will use other carriers to transport shipments that would have been assigned to 21 Air. Its other carriers include Sun Country Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Air Transport International, ABX Air, ASL Airlines and Cargojet.
North Carolina-incorporated 21 Air, which specializes in cargo shipments to and from Mexico, said in a statement Sunday that it remains focused on supported those affected by the crash “as well as working closely with the NTSB and all our partners, like Amazon, as the investigation continues.”
“We are confident in our safety policies, procedures and training,” 21 Air said.
In the hours after the crash, 21 Air CEO Keith Winters offered condolences to the families of the dead and injured and cooperation to investigators.
“Our deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives,” he said in a statement. “Our immediate priorities are supporting those affected, assisting the authorities, and ensuring that accurate information is communicated as it becomes available.”
Five people were killed and five were injured when a 21 Air Boeing 767-300 overran a runway at Miami International Airport just before 2 p.m. ET Sept. 6 while it was landing, according to officials.
It struck two vehicles, including a van carrying workers for an airline cleaning service. All five people who were killed were on the ground; authorities identified them as Yoel Rodriguez Naranjo, 53; Rolando Aleman Leon, 55; Julio C. Pineda, 75; Carlos Acosta Fajardo, 53; and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo, 47.
Flight 7598 was arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico, when it overran Runway 30 and struck two vehicles before it stopped, Miami-Dade County Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said.
Data from the flight’s cockpit voice recorder (CVR) revealed that as one pilot was trying to land, the other cautioned repeatedly that the aircraft was going too fast, but there was no “consistent verbal response to the comments about speed,” according to a summary of the CVR data released by the NTSB.
The data suggested that the plane touched down, and about 15 seconds later a pilot called for a go-around, a maneuver in which a plane aborts its landing by pulling up and circling around to try to land again.
The NTSB’s investigator in charge of the probe, Chihoon Shin, said the aircraft’s flight data recorder showed its thrust increased during landing in a way that was consistent with a go-around attempt.
He also said, “The speed brakes and the thrust reversers were not deployed.”
Speed brakes are active flaps commonly deployed to help an aircraft slow down, while thrust reversers are often used to help slow a plane upon landing. Shin said it was not clear why they might not have been deployed.
The investigation into the crash continues.
Nantel of Amazon said, “We’ll continue working to support the investigation and everyone affected.”
