Miami-Dade Aviation and Seaport Committee Meeting - September 8, 2026

The Miami-Dade County Aviation and Seaport Committee met on September 8, 2026, with Chairwoman Danielle Cohen Higgins presiding and Vice Chairman Roberto J. Gonzalez and Commissioners Oliver G. Gilbert III, Keon Hardeman, and Natalie Milian Orbis present. The meeting opened with an invocation, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a public comment period in which no one spoke. The principal focus was an operational briefing on the September 6, 2026 crash of an Amazon Air cargo flight at Miami International Airport, followed by routine procurement approvals and reports.

Consent Calendar

• Resolution 261442 (Aviation Department): approved 5-0 and forwarded to the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) a contract with Premiere Design Solutions, Inc., Contract No. E25AV02, for professional services at Miami International Airport, maximum amount $2,696,852.32, for an eight-year term.
• Resolution 261443 (Aviation Department): approved 5-0 and advanced to the October 6, 2026 BCC meeting a contract award for modifications to the North Terminal inline checked baggage inspection system, Project No. AB040A, to OEC-Paradise, JV, in an amount not to exceed $101,047,487.47; the advancement was requested to avoid delays tied to TSA installing 25 CTX machines.
• Resolution 261463 (Strategic Procurement): approved 5-0 and forwarded to the BCC additional expenditure authority of $16,004,764.00, making the total modified cumulative amount for Contract No. X027A, Building Management System, $178,238,373.00.
• Resolution 261483 (Strategic Procurement): this add-on, which would have authorized a non-competitive designated purchase for PropWorks System Software under Contract No. L-10159, with a two-year extension, a one-year renewal option, and expenditure authority of $420,091.00 for a total modified amount of $1,070,158.00, was withdrawn by the administration before the agenda was set; agenda notes show it withdrawn 3-0.
• Item 261406 (Clerk of the Board): approved 5-0 the Clerk's summary of minutes for the July 13, 2026 Aviation and Seaport Committee meeting.
• Items 261399 and 261400 (Mayor): received 5-0 the Aviation Department's Aviation Capital Program Reports for August and September 2026.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Chairwoman Cohen Higgins noted there were no public hearing items on the agenda and opened the reasonable opportunity for public comment; no speaker cards were submitted and no public testimony was given.

Discussion: MIA Crash Briefing

The committee heard a special briefing from the Miami International Airport Director on the September 6, 2026 crash of an Amazon Air Boeing 767 cargo aircraft, operated by 21 Air, on Runway 12/30 at about 2 p.m. The director reported 10 casualties: five deaths, three people transported in critical condition to Ryder Trauma, and the pilot and co-pilot treated at Jackson West and reportedly in good condition. There were more than 211 cancellations on Sunday and about 183 the following day. Two runways (12/30 and 8 Right) remained closed while the NTSB investigated; two runways (8 Left and 9/27) were operating, giving the airport about half capacity. The crash damaged roughly 370 linear feet of perimeter fence and struck a passenger van and a civilian vehicle outside the fence line. About 2,300 gallons of fuel were drained from the aircraft wings as evidence, environmental assessments began, and the flight data recorder was removed to Washington, D.C. The fire department was on scene in about 30 seconds with more than 60 units, well within the FAA's three-minute response requirement, and Commissioner Milian Orbis noted more than 200 emergency responders were on scene.

The director said MIA passes annual FAA Part 319A safety inspections and all four runways have the required 1,000-foot runway safety area. He said FAA rules treat engineered material arresting systems (EMAS) as an alternative solution only for airports that cannot provide the 1,000-foot safety area, not as a complementary system, and that his research showed no U.S. airport with the 1,000-foot safety area has EMAS. He said the county would consider NTSB recommendations and would prepare a cost estimate.

Commissioner Oliver G. Gilbert III said he wants MIA to pursue EMAS as a voluntary redundancy even if the NTSB does not recommend it, as long as the runway safety area is not reduced, because five lives were lost and going beyond federal minimums is justified. He also raised concern about public messaging after the crash, saying the County Mayor should be the public face of the county's response and calling for clear protocols. Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis commended the first responders and asked the director to bring a future committee report on the cost and any runway modifications needed for EMAS. Commissioner Keon Hardeman cautioned that media coverage implied the airport was at fault, said MIA is safe, and asked whether EMAS could be a diminishing return or might not have prevented this accident. Vice Chairman Roberto J. Gonzalez supported exploring safety features beyond FAA requirements and praised the response. Chairwoman Cohen Higgins expressed condolences, agreed that the county should present a unified public front, and said the response involved many moving parts. A Deputy Mayor noted that the county charter already makes the Mayor the head of the county for emergency management and said an MOU could memorialize those protocols.

Key Outcomes

• The committee set the agenda with item 3D withdrawn and approved the remaining agenda 5-0; item 3B was advanced to the October 6, 2026 BCC meeting, and resolutions 3A and 3C were forwarded to the BCC with favorable recommendations.
• The Clerk's minutes and both Aviation Capital Program Reports were approved or received unanimously.
• The director agreed to prepare an EMAS cost and feasibility estimate for a future committee report, with the county open to adding EMAS as a redundancy if feasible.
• Officials agreed to continue work on an MOU and emergency communications protocols to ensure a unified public response in future incidents.

The meeting was adjourned after the committee found no further unfinished business.