A lifelong aviation enthusiast who joined&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;in 2007, Curt came to&nbsp;the publication&nbsp;from the broadcast industry where he was a national science and technology television reporter and producer. He writes on the FBO field, aviation finance, and sustainable aviation and occasionally contributes to&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;sister publication&nbsp;Business Jet Traveler. Curt was a member of the AINtv reporting staff that won the 2008 Aerospace Journalist of the Year award for Best Airshow Daily. That same year, he was a finalist for another AJOYA award. He earned an AJOYA for Best Business Aviation Submission in 2018 and was a finalist in that category in 2021. He received the National Air Transportation Association’s&nbsp; Aviation Journalist Award in 2012 and won a Pegasus Sapphire Business Aviation Award for outstanding journalism in 2021.
Before joining AIN, Curt worked with&nbsp;Consumer Reports’ television division, CRTV, and for several local television news staffs. An honors graduate of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, he earned a master’s degree in broadcast journalism from Boston University in 1995. Curt lives in New York State with his wife and two young sons.

Business Aviation Services Editor

Curt Epstein

Aviation traffic snarls in the New York City area may soon be easing with the conclusion of the runway rehabilitation project at Newark Airport (KEWR) earlier this week. Parallel 11,000-foot Runway 4L/22R had been closed since April 15 for the work, which was completed two weeks ahead of schedule.
According to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the $121 million project was required for the runway to meet FAA safety standards. Its closure not only led to&nbsp;delays in arrivals and departures at KEWR but also caused subsequent traffic disruptions at other airports, particularly Teterboro (KTEB), which led to the diversion of business aviation flights to other area airports.
“As FAA staffing and operational challenges impacted air traffic controllers’ ability to effectively use the remaining two operational runways at Newark Liberty during the rehabilitation, the Port Authority worked to accelerate the construction schedule by bringing in additional crews, expanding shifts, and enabling construction to take place 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” the agency noted.
“Newark presently has the ability to use the inboard runway [4L/22R] as a departure-only runway,” said Andrew Aponte, FAA district general manager for New York, speaking on Wednesday at the NBAA Regional Forum at Westchester County Airport (KHPN), adding that the ILS is expected to be operational by next week. “Long story short, they have the ability to run more aircraft in and out of Newark Airport now, which they didn’t have previously.”
The speakers in the air traffic control issues panel also warned the New York operators in the audience to be prepared for the institution of presidential TFRs this summer centered on Bedminster, New Jersey. “Usually, once a TFR goes into effect, all the restrictions associated with it immediately go into effect,” said Dean Snell, manager of NBAA’s air traffic services desk. “With the VIP arriving early or later, those times can change, so it’s usually best not to schedule your arrival 10 minutes before the TFR is expected.”
He noted that the TFRs will come with route advisories for arrivals to specific airports published by the FAA command center. For departures, required routes are not typically specified. “It’s more avoiding those west gates and choosing to go for the north gates and south gates,” explained Snell. “Throw in weather, and now you are looking for any way out of Dodge.”

News, issues, personnel, equipment and developments about air traffic management.

Conclusion of Newark Airport Runway Rehab Could Ease Traffic Woes

The project wrapped two weeks early after 24/7 effort

A major runway rehab project at Newark Airport was completed two weeks ahead of schedule.

Conclusion of KEWR Runway Rehab Could Ease Traffic Woes

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Charles Alcock

New developments at airports including regulations and noise issues; legal disputes; openings, acquisitions and mergers.

News about environmental issues relating to aircraft operations, including noise issues, emissisions, and regulations. See Fuel for biofuel.

News and issues relating to international air transport and cargo carriers, national airlines and regional airlines, including aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

Aircraft operators will be charged a new fee to support the work

Redesign of UK Airspace Will Start with London Airports

Kerry Lynch

News about bills, laws, regulations and other governmental decisions affecting aviation and aerospace. Topics include FAA re-authorizations, taxes on fuel and aviation activities, environmental legislation, ICAO decisions, governmental mediation of labor conflicts and World Trade Organization disputes and decisions.

Bolen said system needs addition $18.5 billion over three years

ATC Modernization Becomes Urgent Focus of FAA Reauthorization

Amy Wilder

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

News and issues relating to the aerospace industry that are related to the science, engineering and business of flight in space involving civil, industrial and military applications, and similar topics related to flight in the atmosphere of the Earth that are not covered more directly by other AINonline subject channels. In other words, both astronautical and aeronautical subjects, except for those aeronautical topics that are specifically covered elsewhere on this website.

Predictive engine designed to support tower situational awareness

NoamAI Launches Artificial Intelligence ATC Assistant

Hanneke Weitering

News and issues relating to civil and military unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) of all kinds and sizes, including those used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), combat (unmanned combat air vehicles, or UCAVs), law enforcement, research and other applications. Of particular focus is the FAA's planned integration of UAS into the U.S. national airspace system.

More In ATC

Redesign of UK Airspace Will Start with London Airports

Aircraft operators will be charged a new fee to support the work

ATC Modernization Becomes Urgent Focus of FAA Reauthorization

Bolen said system needs addition $18.5 billion over three years

NoamAI Launches Artificial Intelligence ATC Assistant

Predictive engine designed to support tower situational awareness

EASA Certifies First U-space ATM Service Provider For Uncrewed Aircraft

Anra Technologies is ready to launch U-space services across Europe

FAA: Newark ATC Failures Prompt Controller Trauma Leave

Agency reiterates need for tech upgrades after Newark failures

New FAA-NATCA Deal Adds Bonuses To Bolster ATC Ranks

NATCA calls new pact “a meaningful step” toward solving controller shortage

WWII-era North Atlantic Blue Spruce Routes Removed

Blue Spruce involved airspace between Iceland and Greenland

Lawmakers Challenge FAA’s Starlink Consideration

Reps Moulton, Larsen, and Cohen requested information about potential changes to the FAA Enterprise Network Services program

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN