From the Flight Deck – Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (OPF)

Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (OPF) is a medium sized primarily general and business aviation airport located in Miami-Dade County Florida. It is also home to the Miami Coast Guard station with its fleet of fixed and rotorwing aircraft. OPF is just six miles north of the larger Miami International (MIA) and five miles south of the North Perry (WHO) airport. Even though MIA is a much larger airport, the runway configuration is somewhat similar and the airports are sometimes confused. OPF has associated Class Delta airspace that is adjacent to and underlies the Miami Class Bravo. It is also adjacent to the WHO Class Delta to the north. When planning a trip to OPF, thorough review of rules and requirements to operate in this complex airspace is highly recommended.

1:36 - The traffic mix at OPF.

1:58 - The runway configuration is made up of a set of parallel runways labeled 9-27 left and right, and a non-intersecting runway located between the parallels labeled 12-30. The complex system of taxiways provides access to all services, ramps, and facilities found between the runways. One bit of advice, know where you want to park on the airport before you get there. There are several FBOs located on the airport and letting the tower know early on, will help them get you to your destination as expeditiously as possible. The risk of wrong surface landings exists at OPF.

3:23 - Hot Spot #1 is a very large area of concrete found at the intersection of taxiways Echo, Tango, Gulf, and Hotel in proximity to runway 12-30. As a result of the large physical area, it does not allow for above ground signage. All of the markings and indicators are on the pavement. For pilots who become confused this could easily end up in an incursion of runway 12-30.

4:05 - Another taxi issue occurs at the intersection of taxiways Tango, Tango 1, Tango 2, November, and November 1. Aircraft taxing for departure on either runway 9L or 12 have become confused and attempted to take-off on the wrong runway.

4:36 - There are several more unique aspects to the OPF operation. Aircraft landing runway 9R-27L will be instructed to “remain this frequency” after clearing the runway. This is because the Tower is responsible for the runways and taxiways between runway 12-30 and runway 9R-27L.

5:00 - When taxing for departure, ground control will assign a run-up area if one is needed. There are several areas the tower uses located around the airport and they will send you to the one that fits best with the traffic flow.

5:14 - Major events occur in the Miami area on a regular basis. As such, during one of these events the FBO’s ramp areas can become full and as a result the airport owner will start utilizing taxiways and even a runway for aircraft overflow parking. Check NOTAMs early and often to keep updated on this situation.

5:43 - There is a robust helicopter community based at the airport. There are several arrival and departure routes for helicopters that proceed east or west between the parallel runways, at or below 500’ AGL.

The FAA's From the Flight Deck video series uses aircraft-mounted cameras to capture runway and taxiway footage and combines them with diagrams and visual graphics to clearly identify hot spots and other safety-sensitive items. Learn more at https://www.faa.gov/FromTheFlightDeck.

This video is informational only and does not replace the pilot’s responsibility to conduct required pre-flight planning in accordance with FAR 91.103.