Amazon announced this Sunday the suspension of its operations with 21 Air, the cargo airline that operated the accident flight 7598 at Miami International Airport. The decision comes a week after the tragedy that claimed the lives of five Cuban workers.
"After the tragic incident from last weekend, we have taken time to support the investigation and review some of the circumstances surrounding what happened, and we have decided to suspend our operations with 21 Air, the operator of flight 7598," said Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel, in an official statement.
Amazon indicated that the shipments corresponding to 21 Air will be redistributed among other operators with whom it already works: Sun Country Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Air Transport International, ABX Air, ASL Airlines, and Cargojet.
21 Air, a cargo airline based in North Carolina that primarily operates Boeing 767 aircraft, did not immediately respond to requests for comments. Its CEO, Keith Winters, had expressed condolences following the accident and promised cooperation with investigators.
The accident that shook Miami Airport
The accident occurred on September 6, when flight 7598—a Boeing 767-300 arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico—overshot runway 30 at Miami airport shortly before 2:00 p.m. and collided with two vehicles before being engulfed in flames.
The black boxes, as revealed by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), provided alarming data: the aircraft touched down at 158 knots, equivalent to about 182 miles per hour, while one of the pilots repeatedly warned that the speed was excessive without receiving "a consistent verbal response."
The records also show that the air brakes and thrust reversers—systems designed to slow the aircraft after landing—were not deployed. "We still don't know if it was a choice made by the pilots or if they were not functioning," explained Pablo Rojas, a lawyer and aviation expert.
About 15 seconds before the cockpit recording ended, one of the pilots requested a go-around maneuver to regain altitude, but it was too late. Both pilots survived and have since been discharged. The official cause of the accident remains undetermined.
Five Cubans dead and lawsuits in progress
The five individuals who lost their lives were Cuban employees of the airport cleaning company Professional Ocean Service Corporation. They were traveling in a work vehicle when the plane struck them.
Their names: Yoel Rodríguez Naranjo, 53 years old; Rolando Alemán León, 55; Julio C. Pineda, 75; Carlos Acosta Fajardo, 53; and Javierkys Reyes Quevedo, 47.
The stories of the five deceased Cubans left a profound mark on the migrant community in Miami. Five other individuals were injured in the accident.
Lawsuits have already been filed in the Miami-Dade courts, including two for wrongful death.
The widow of Yoel Rodríguez Naranjo filed a lawsuit against Amazon, 21 Air, and the pilots, alleging negligence, inadequate training, and the use of an aircraft that is 32 years old.
The survivor Roosevelt Perdomo Torres and his wife also went to court, claiming he was "thrown through the air" and suffered fractures in his hand, leg, and ankle.
The lawsuits target Amazon Inc., Amazon Air Cargo, 21 Air LLC, and the pilots identified as Joseph Carroll and Jaime Felipe Silva Molina, along with other companies associated with the operation. All allegations will be addressed in court while the federal investigation remains ongoing.
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