One month before the busy Thanksgiving travel week, Miami International Airport hosted its second MIA Airport Instruction and Readiness (MIAair) tour of 2023 for 25 children with special needs. The tour allowed participants to walk through the airport travel experience from start to finish in a safe and controlled environment. Attendees included children from the Atlantic Academy of Miami in Kendall.
The children, accompanied by their teachers, parents, or guardians, practiced entering the airport, getting boarding passes, going through security, and boarding an American Airlines plane. The program also served as a learning experience for airline and Transportation Security Administration workers at MIA. The goal of the MIAair program is for anyone – regardless of their disability – to experience the magic and wonder of flight. Since the tours began in 2015, more than 100 families have participated. The tour program resumed in 2023 after taking a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic.