Amazon Air is coming to Jacksonville International Airport.
That doesn't mean you can fly to your favorite city via the company's flights. However, it could mean that your Jacksonville-area packages may arrive a little sooner.
The new air cargo facility will include more than 50,000 square feet of warehouse and distribution space on about four acres.
"This facility will serve as a gateway, providing ramp space for our aircraft to park, unload and reload packages. Customer packages arrive by truck and are loaded into unit load devices for direct transfer onto aircraft, and vice versa," says Danny Vivenzio, a spokesperson for Amazon Air.
Having the facility, along with access to the major interstates in Jacksonville, will help deliveries reach customers faster, he explains.
"This is the next evolution of the company's growth in Northeast Florida and continued evidence that the region is a growing hub for the logistics industry," says Mark VanLoh, CEO of Jacksonville Aviation Authority.
FedEx, Forward Air, UPS and USPS all have cargo facilities at the airport, in addition to cargo transported by commercial carriers, VanLoh says. The airport is home to other non-commercial flight businesses, including the aircraft assembly company Embraer, Malone Air Charter and several maintenance and repair companies.
Amazon is one of the largest employers in Jacksonville, with several of its sorting facilities on or near JAA's four airports around the city.
Amazon has 11 facilities in Jacksonville, more than any single city in Florida, Vivenzio says. The facilities include five fulfillment and sorting centers and six last-mile delivery sites, two of which were built in the past two years. The company employs 7,000 people in Jacksonville.
The facility should be ready to use by third quarter of this year. It's the first air cargo location for Amazon in Northeast Florida.
The company has invested more than $45 billion in Florida since 2010, according to Vivenzio.
Amazon Air has more than 100 aircraft, including 737s, 767s and A330s. This will be the third Amazon Air site in Florida, including another gateway in Miami and an Amazon Air Hub in Lakeland. — By Vanessa Caceres