Jeff Bezos breaks ground on Prime Air airport

Amazon can rightly be credited with ushering in the era of e-commerce, allowing millions of people to order groceries and various other products from the comfort and luxury of their homes, and have those delivered to their doorstep. Building, maintaining and expanding the infrastructure and logistics capabilities to support a massive nationwide supply chain network is no small feat, and no one knows this better than Amazon. The e-commerce titan just broke ground on its three million square foot Prime Air airport outside Cincinnati, Kentucky.

The company has reportedly committed a staggering $1.5 billion on the airport, in an effort to strengthen its nationwide shipping infrastructure. Although it only owns a few dozen planes, it is definitely preparing to increase its fleet and bolster the capabilities of its Prime subscription services in which users can get anything they order in 24 hours. The breaking of the ground was carried out by none other than Jeff Bezos, the founder, chairman, and CEO of Amazon who drove a loader and cleared a pile of dirt to mark the beginning of construction. The company reportedly is also looking to construct more of its airports in Texas and Ohio this year.

While this move would be celebrated by Prime users as well as shareholders, it could spell unpleasant changes for courier delivery giants like FedEx, who would go on to face tough competition in the coming years.