Miami Executive Airport airport opened on November 18, 1967, replacing the original Tamiami Airport, which was located near the Tamiami Trail. The relocation was prompted by the growth of the surrounding area and the proximity to the flight path to Miami International Airport, which necessitated the move to the southwest, near the community of Kendall. The site of the former Tamiami Airport is now home to Florida International University. 450 aircraft are based there, mostly single-engine light aircraft.[citation needed]
The airport serves as a port of entry[6], with U.S. Customs personnel available. Although not certified for airline use, Miami Executive Airport has become a hub for corporate aviation in recent years.[7]
History
The airport opened in 1967, replacing an eponymous airfield to the north which closed due to its proximity to Miami International Airport.[8] When built, the airport also had a seaplane runway which is still visible on the north side of the airfield. The airport was renamed from Kendall-Tamiami Executive Airport to Miami Executive Airport on October 7, 2014, by the Miami-Dade County Commission. All secondary airports in Miami-Dade County were rebranded to include the name "Miami".[9][10]
Facilities
The airport covers 1,380 acres (558 ha) and has three asphaltrunways:[2]
In the year ending 3 May 2018, the airport had 194,111 aircraft operations, average 531 per day: 99% general aviation, 1% air taxi and <1% military. 135 aircraft were based at the airport: 104 single-engine, 17 multi-engine, 6 helicopter, 5 jet, and 3 glider.[1][citation needed]
The airport is home to Tamiami Composite Squadron[11] (SER-FL-355), a local squadron of the Civil Air Patrol[12] (United States Air Force Auxiliary), whose mission includes aerial and ground search and rescue.
A request for $1-million was added to the 2007 Miami-Dade Federal Legislative Package to extend runway 9R/27L 550 feet to the east and 1,798 feet to the west to "...allow aircraft to increase their fuel and/or cargo load and ... allow for the accommodation of nearly 100 percent of midsize jet aircraft under wet runway conditions."[15]
Ohio University all-season test facility
Ohio University Avionics Engineering Center[16] operates a controversial avionics test facility on Runway 9L, the north runway at Miami Executive Airport. This facility was used in 2007–8 to certify the steep approach landing system on the Embraer ERJ-170 and ERJ-190 transport category jet airliners.[17] Embraer conducted this testing and software development[18] in order to meet stringent requirements and approval to land at London City Airport, an airport in central London, England. The test facility was under intense scrutiny due to numerous controversial test flights involving the challenging development and modifications to the fly-by-wire flight control systems in these advanced aircraft.[18]
Testing of experimental aircraft over congested areas such as Kendall is prohibited by the FAA.[19] Media coverage in the Miami Herald and Kendall Gazette about the safety issues led the Kendall Federation of Homeowners Associations to call for a meeting to discuss the problem.[citation needed]
Incidents and accidents
On November 29, 1978, a Convair CV-240 crashed when the trainee pilot lost control during a simulated engine failure at V2 speed during takeoff. The aircraft touched down left of the runway and wound up in a canal, catching fire and killing one of the two people on board.[20]
On February 11, 2015, a Beechcraft 1900C operated by Aeropanamericano, C.A., experienced an engine failure after takeoff from Miami Executive Airport and attempted to return but crashed, killing all four people on board.[21]
^Baro Diaz, Madeline (August 31, 2007). "Flight School Instructor Arrested". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. p. 3B. Shaffer, owner of the Silver Express flight school, was a proponent of a runway expansion proposal and apparently felt tests of an Embraer ERJ-170-100LR turbo-jet could threaten plans by causing negative sentinment in the community
