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

Blue Ash Airport, a part of Cincinnati, Ohio since the 1920s, was slated to close at the end of August following the city’s notification to the FAA, effectively ending a five-year battle between the city and airport users. As recently as last year the city had promised that the airport would continue to operate, albeit in a reconfigured form, but by mid-August crews had begun to remove the tanks in the fuel farm. 
“The Cincinnati administration, led by Mayor Mark Mallory, has failed to honor previous commitments to AOPA and the aviation community that Blue Ash Airport would continue to operate as a general aviation airport,” said Bill Dunn, AOPA’s vice president of airport advocacy. With its 3,499-foot runway, the airport was once the busiest nontower facility in Ohio, according to Bill Christian, CEO of services provider Blue Ash Aviation, which plans to relocate to nearby Butler County Airport. Christian said the city of Blue Ash, which owns half the airport, plans to build a park and golf courses on its part of the site.
In another attempted closure, St. Clair, Mo., city authorities are wrapping up the final details requested by the FAA in their four-year process to shutter St. Clair Regional Airport. The city must receive FAA approval to close the airport since the obligations for federal grants used in land acquisition do not expire, and among the requirements specified by the agency was a meeting with interested stakeholders, including tenants and AOPA. 
The city asserts the facility has failed to be profitable and is a drain on finances. If the FAA approves the closure, the city hopes eventually to lure retail merchants to the site, but Dunn believes the agency will not approve the closure. “The FAA is required under policy to consider a request to release an airport from federal obligations, but it is not required to grant the request,” he said.

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

Two Communities Look To Close Airports

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Richard Pedicini

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.

Event size has doubled while hangars are added at a hurried pace

Catarina Aviation Show Grows Alongside Its Host Airport

Matt Thurber

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

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.

The project will add holding, parking, and deicing areas to what is now Taxiway H

Chicago Midway Decommissioning Closed Runway 13L-31R

Charles Alcock

Test operations could begin in Rome during 2026

UrbanV Partners With eVTOL Operator FFG to Develop Vertiport Network

Amy Wilder

Transfer times could reach up to three hours

Cabo Airport Access Slowed by Road Project

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.

Congress issues $3.5 million annually for businesses harmed by certain presidential restrictions

Lawmakers Call on FAA To Pave Way for TFR Reimbursements

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

Airport disruption appears to have been more serious in Portugal than Spain

Bizav Avoids the Worst of Power Cuts in Spain and Portugal

FAA made several updates to its AIP grant assurances, including on DEI as well as avgas

FAA Calls for Continued Avgas in AIP Grant Assurances

Hanneke Weitering

News and issues regarding all manner of civil and military rotorcraft and their powerplants, including helicopters, tilt rotors and unmanned air vehicles.

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