Coast Guard Air Station Miami

COMMANDING OFFICER

Capt. Aaron J. Ortenzio

Captain Ortenzio assumed command of Air Station Miami on June 27^th, 2025. Prior to his second tour at Air Station Miami, Captain Ortenzio served as the Chief of Incident Management within the Response Division of District Southeast (formerly District Seven) in Miami, FL. In this role, he led forty personnel in planning and executing missions across a 1.8 million square mile area that spans the Southeast U.S. and Caribbean. His primary functional portfolio included search and rescue, aviation, emergency management, pollution/HAZMAT response, and command center operations.

Captain Ortenzio was commissioned at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in May 2000, and his first assignment was as a Deck Watch Officer on Coast Guard Cutter ACUSHNET homeported in Ketchikan, AK. He was selected for flight training and earned his Naval Aviator golden wings at Corpus Christi, TX in February 2004. From 2004 – 2008, Captain Ortenzio was assigned to ATC Mobile Operations Division, where he flew the HU-25A. Captain Ortenzio’s first tour at Air Station Miami spanned from 2008 – 2013, where he was the Flight Safety Officer and flew the HU-25C/D and HC-144A.

Upon completing his initial operational tours, Captain Ortenzio was assigned to numerous staff tours including the U.S. Coast Guard Office of Search and Rescue (2013-2017), where he served as the USCG Liaison to the International COSPAS-SARSAT Program and U.S. Coast Guard Office of Aviation Forces (2017-2019) as the Fixed Wing and Sensors Division Chief.

He returned to operations to serve as Executive Officer at Air Station Sacramento from 2019 – 2022 where he flew the C-27J Spartan.

Captain Ortenzio holds a Bachelor of Science in Government from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and a Masters in Aeronautical Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. His military decorations include four Coast Guard Meritorious Service Medals, two Coast Guard Commendation Medals and four Coast Guard Achievement Medals.

Captain Ortenzio is originally from Youngstown, Ohio and is married to the former Tamu Wilson of Mobile, Alabama. They have a daughter, Serafina.

EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Cmdr. James E. Cepa

Commander Cepa reported to Air Station Miami in June 2024. First as Chief of Personnel & Support and now as Executive Officer, he supervises the Air Station’s 320+ officers, enlisted, civilian, and reserve staff. He is responsible for base services across the 51-acre facility supporting six tenant commands in addition to Air Station’s five MH-65E helicopters and six HC-144B aircraft. Additionally, he serves as an MH-65E search and rescue pilot. Prior to this role, Commander Cepa was stationed in the Netherlands as the International Port Security Program Coordinator. He supervised a team of 10 active-duty liaisons to assess foreign port antiterrorism measures, review maritime security procedures, and share best practices to improve maritime governance throughout Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.

Prior to these assignments, CDR Cepa was an MH-65D aircraft commander, flight examiner, and instructor pilot. He was the Flight Safety Officer at Air Station Borinquen in Puerto Rico and a Search and Rescue (SAR) pilot & Rotary Wing Aerial Intercept (RWAI) pilot at Air Station Detroit. Before earning his wings of gold in 2012 from the US Navy Flight School in Pensacola, Florida, he served as the Damage Control Assistant aboard CGC VIGOROUS (WMEC 627) in Cape May, New Jersey; pre-commissioning First Lieutenant for the CGC WAESCHE (WMSL 751) in Alameda, California; and as the Weapons Officer aboard CGC MUNRO (WHEC 724) in Kodiak, Alaska.

A native of Orland Park, Illinois, CDR Cepa graduated the U. S. Coast Guard Academy in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. He has a Master of Science in Quality Systems Management from Cambridge College, and he completed certification as a Security Management Professional through the International Security Management Institute in the United Kingdom. He attended a year-long intensive Arabic language course at the Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute in Arlington, VA and is a graduate of the US Naval War College’s Joint Professional Military Education (Level One) program.

Commander Cepa lives near Fort Lauderdale, Florida with his wife, Catherine, three young children, and their two rescued Puerto Rican “sato” dogs.

COMMAND MASTER CHIEF

Master Chief Petty Officer Earl M. McClelland

Master Chief McClelland assumed the duties of Command Master Chief (CMC) for Air Station Miami in July 2024. Prior to this assignment, he served as the Command Senior Chief petty officer and Leading Chief petty officer at the Aviation Projects Acquisition Center (APAC) responsible for the process of incorporating 14 Air Force C-27Js into Coast Guard service and optimizing their operational capabilities for Coast Guard missions. Master Chief served as the senior enlisted advisor for over 80 personnel at the APAC including active duty, civilians, and contractors. His previous assignments include Aids to Navigation Team Colfax LA, Air Station New Orleans, Air Station Sacramento, Air Station Clearwater, Air Station Kodiak and Air Station Barbers Point.

As a Navigator on the HC-130H aircraft Master Chief flew operational missions in the Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic and the Gulf of Mexico. Master Chief McClelland responded to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, where he and his crew transported the U.S. Secretary of State into the country and played a vital role in the Coast Guard's evacuation of 1,150 American citizens and 240 patients with life–threatening injuries. His skills as an aircrew member were further exhibited following the Deepwater Horizon oil rig disaster. During the response, he skillfully utilized the multiple mapping functions of the HC-130’s radar to provide data to federal response agencies, leading to the removal of over 172 million gallons of oil from the Gulf of Mexico.

Master Chief McClelland is a native of Western, NY. He enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard in October of 2002 and graduated from Avionics Electrical Technician A School in 2004. He is a graduate of the Coast Guard Basic Air Navigator course, Chief Petty Officer Academy, the Senior Enlisted Leadership Course, and has earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Liberty University. He lives in Pembroke Pines with his wife, Shannon, and son, Rob. His awards include two Coast Guard Commendation Medals, two Achievement Medals and the Commandant’s Letter of Commendation, and seven Good Conduct Medals in addition to various team and unit awards.