(MIAMI, February 20, 2014) – The Miami-Dade Aviation Department (MDAD) and the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue (MDFR) Aviation Division today unveiled four new state-of-the-art Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) vehicles that will soon enter into service at Miami International Airport. The new fire trucks will enhance the airport’s ability to respond to airfield emergencies and keep MIA on the forefront of life safety technology.
“These new aircraft firefighting vehicles are a wise investment that will help safeguard our world-class airport for many years to come,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez, who was on hand for the celebration at MIA’s Mid-Field Fire Station along with Miami-Dade Aviation Director Emilio T. González, MDFR Chief Dave Downey and MDFR Aviation Division Chief Stephen Kilby.
The four new trucks were purchased by MDAD for $3 million from industry leader Rosenbauer and feature Driver-Enhanced Vision System technology, which employs GPS and Forward-Looking Infrared imaging to allow the operator of the vehicle to navigate in zero-visibility conditions. All four vehicles can produce more than 6,000 gallons of foam for firefighting incidents, with two capable of generating 12,000 gallons. Additionally, the two larger trucks feature a 50-foot-long “Stinger” that can pierce the skin of an aircraft and deliver water and foam directly into the aircraft’s interior. Importantly, the addition of the four new ARFF vehicles at MIA will allow the airport to redeploy two trucks from its current MIA fleet to serve life safety needs at Opa-locka Executive Airport and Kendall-Tamiami Executive Airport.
“Passenger safety is our top priority at MIA, and these top-of-the-line additions to our upgraded Fire Rescue fleet will allow our firefighters to meet any aviation emergency that may arise,” said Aviation Director González.
The Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Aviation Division consists of three stations that provide Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting response to any emergency situation within the required Federal Aviation Administration time of less than three minutes. Two of the stations are located at MIA and the third station is located at Opa-locka Executive Airport.
