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Investigators seek answers after Amazon cargo plane crash kills five at Miami airport

An Amazon cargo plane is seen after it crashed at Miami International Airport on Sunday in Miami. The Federal Aviation Administration said Prime Air Flight 7598 overran the runway while landing around 2 p.m. ET after departing from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Joe Raedle
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An Amazon cargo plane is seen after it crashed at Miami International Airport on Sunday in Miami. The Federal Aviation Administration said Prime Air Flight 7598 overran the runway while landing around 2 p.m. ET after departing from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Updated September 7, 2026 at 2:31 PM AST

Authorities in Florida are investigating a plane crash at Miami International Airport that killed five people and injured at least five others on Sunday.

It was not immediately clear how many of those killed or hurt were on board the plane or on the ground.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the Amazon Prime cargo plane overran the runway while landing around 2 p.m. Sunday.

Rosie Cordero-Stutz, the Miami-Dade County sheriff, said that the plane came to rest in a field adjacent to the airport.

Amazon said the plane was operated by 21 Air, a contract cargo carrier.

Photos showed the plane off the runway in a parking lot, with its wings charred. The FAA said that Flight 7598 originally took off from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Miami-Dade Aviation Department said in a statement that the plane overran the diagonal runway and is disabled at the northwest end of the airport.

"What we found was a very complex situation here," Miami-Dade County Fire Chief Ray Jadallah told reporters on Sunday, adding that the airplane struck several vehicles and trapped victims who had to be extricated. He also said emergency teams were able to rescue the pilot and co-pilot.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators said they were looking into all factors, from potential mechanical failure to environmental variables or flight crew performance.

Videos posted on social media of the touchdown show the cargo plane landing hard and fast midway down the runway. There were also thunderstorms and winds in the area at the time, but it wasn't immediately clear if bad weather played a role in the crash.

Officials at Miami International Airport said on Monday morning that two of the four runways were back open following a temporary groundstop, but cautioned that it was still dealing with the "impacts of this incident."

"Because of aircraft and flight crews not arriving at MIA due to the cancellations yesterday, we will continue to see impacts to operations throughout the day," the airport said in a notice on its website. "Passengers with flights scheduled today should check directly with their airline for flight status updates before heading to the airport."

More than 230 flights into and out of Miami International Airport have been delayed as of Monday afternoon, according to FlightAware.com. More than 70 flights have been cancelled as of Monday afternoon.

Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement on Sunday the company's priority is "the safety, well-being, and care of everyone involved."

"Our deepest sympathies go out to the families, loved ones, and all those affected by this devastating loss," Nantel said. "We're working closely with local authorities and officials to learn more and will cooperate fully with any investigation."

Copyright 2026 NPR

Chandelis Duster
Arezou Rezvani
Arezou Rezvani is a reporter and senior editor for NPR's Morning Edition. She's also founding editor of Up First, NPR's Golden Globe-nominated daily news podcast.