Cargojet charter with Amazon freight skids off runway in Vancouver

Canadian airport says runway will be closed for 2 days

(UPDATED 12:45 p.m ET with weather information)

The north runway at Vancouver International Airport in British Columbia is likely to be closed for 48 hours after a Boeing 767 freighter operated by Cargojet on behalf of Amazon Air overran the north runway during landing early Tuesday morning, the airport reported at 9:30 a.m. PST.

The airport authority, in a previous notice posted on its website, said the cargo jet skidded off the runway at about 1:45 a.m. local time. Fire and rescue teams responded to the incident. There were no injuries to the three crew members, the airport said on X. 

The Vancouver Sun reported that light rain and snow had fallen for about 90 minutes before the Amazon freighter arrived from Hamilton, Ontario.

Passenger and cargo airlines will experience delays, the airport warned. Recovery operations are underway, and aircraft continue to arrive and depart on the south runway.

“Details of the aircraft condition are being assessed, and the senior executive team is closely monitoring developments to effectively manage the situation,” Cargojet said in a statement to FreightWaves. “Further details will be made available as more information is confirmed.”

Cargojet is flying a handful of Boeing 767-300 aircraft in Canada on charter contracts for Amazon during the current high season. Cargojet also operates a domestic overnight network among 16 major Canadian cities, with space shared among a range of customers. 

Last summer two Cargojet freighters suffered extensive damage from a hailstorm and were temporarily out of service for repairs. 

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

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Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Parcel and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He was runner up for News Journalist and Supply Chain Journalist of the Year in the Seahorse Freight Association's 2024 journalism award competition. In December 2022, Eric was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist. He won the group's Environmental Journalist of the Year award in 2014 and was the 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. He has appeared on Marketplace, ABC News and National Public Radio to talk about logistics issues in the news. Eric is based in Vancouver, Washington. He can be reached for comments and tips at ekulisch@freightwaves.com