At least five people were killed after an Amazon Prime Air cargo aircraft overran a runway while landing at Miami International Airport on Sunday, September 6, and struck several vehicles on the ground.
Five other people were taken to hospital, including three in critical condition, Miami-Dade Fire Chief Ray Jadallah said. Authorities had not released the names of those killed in the first official updates.
What happened to Flight 7598
Prime Air Flight 7598 departed San Juan, Puerto Rico, and reached Miami shortly before 2 p.m. EDT, or 18:00 GMT. Officials said it left the usable section of a diagonal runway during landing and hit multiple vehicles.
Cargo operator 21 Air was flying the Boeing 767-300 on Amazon's behalf. Flightradar24 said the aircraft was travelling at 112 knots, about 129 mph, when it exited the runway.
The pilot and co-pilot were trapped in the aircraft after the crash. At least two other people were trapped inside vehicles that were struck.
Emergency response at Miami airport
More than 60 rescue units and roughly 200 emergency personnel responded. Fire crews were also managing an active fuel leak late Sunday afternoon.
The airport initially halted all flights. Two of its four runways had reopened by Sunday evening, but passengers were advised to check directly with their airlines because delays and aircraft repositioning can continue after runways reopen.
What is known about the aircraft
The freighter was a 32-year-old Boeing 767-300. Flight-tracking records cited by Reuters show that it flew as a passenger aircraft for several airlines from 1994 until 2015 before entering cargo service.
An aircraft's age alone does not establish the cause of an accident. Commercial aircraft remain in service through regulated inspection and maintenance programmes, and investigators will examine far more than the manufacturing date.
The investigation
The US National Transportation Safety Board sent a team led by Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy and planned an initial briefing in Miami on Monday. Investigators are expected to review flight recorders, runway conditions, maintenance records, crew actions, weather and airport systems.
Amazon, Boeing and 21 Air said they would cooperate. No official cause had been announced, so claims assigning blame before the NTSB's evidence review are premature.
