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.

Senior Editor

Curt Epstein

Embraer has delivered its first EASA-registered Legacy 450 to Luxembourg-based Smart Air SA, which will manage the aircraft on behalf of a customer. The twinjet, operated by ASL, will be based in Brussels and available for charter starting in January. “We are pleased to welcome Smart Air SA as the first European company to manage a Legacy 450,” said Embraer president and CEO Marco Tulio Pellegrini. The clean-sheet design received its EASA certification this summer. The aircraft is the first in its class to feature digital flight controls and full fly-by-wire capability, with a maximum cruise speed of&nbsp; Mach 0.83 and a ceiling of 45,000 feet. At NBAA’s annual convention last month in Las Vegas, the manufacturer announced that the airplane has a range of 2,900 nm; the initial projection was 2,575 nm.

 


“We recommended the Legacy 450 to a customer of ours long before all the positive reports from pilots and journalists,” noted Smart Air founder and CEO Stéphane Ledermann. “We are convinced that this aircraft will be very successful, and we can’t wait to fly it soon.”

News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

Embraer Hands Over First European Legacy 450

The new twinjet will arrive in Brussels in January, ready for charter service.

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Jessica Reed

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.

Company's latest Business Aviation Market Brief showed flight operations rising 2.4% year over year

Global Jet Capital: Bizav Market Stable in 4Q2024

Chad Trautvetter

Aircraft wing assembly is coming together in anticipation of first flight next year

First Flight-test HondaJet Echelon Begins To Take Shape

Kerry Lynch

Company is offering $3 million retrofit kit to bring Global 7500 in line with the 8000

Bombardier Finalizing Global 8000 Flight-test Campaign

Charles Alcock

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.

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.

Essential news and analysis on the defense aerospace business. Your trusted source for new and ongoing programs and requirements in military aircraft (manned and unmanned), engines, avionics, weapons and associated systems, including ground-based air defense.

Helicopter deliveries and orders were among the highlights of aerospace group's 2024 results 

Airbus Pushes For Increased Airliner Deliveries in 2025

Airplane billings soar 14.3%, helicopters climb 7.6%

Industry Billings Top $31B as Bizjet Shipments Increase

While market grew last year and is expected again this year, business aircraft deliveries will flatten out long-term

Teal Group Sees Double-digit Bizav Market Growth in 2025

News and issues concerning the aviation charter and fractional-ownership industries and markets, including company announcements, regulations, new developments and labor issues.

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

More In Aircraft

Global Jet Capital: Bizav Market Stable in 4Q2024

Company's latest Business Aviation Market Brief showed flight operations rising 2.4% year over year

First Flight-test HondaJet Echelon Begins To Take Shape

Aircraft wing assembly is coming together in anticipation of first flight next year

Bombardier Finalizing Global 8000 Flight-test Campaign

Company is offering $3 million retrofit kit to bring Global 7500 in line with the 8000

Airbus Pushes For Increased Airliner Deliveries in 2025

Helicopter deliveries and orders were among the highlights of aerospace group's 2024 results

Industry Billings Top $31B as Bizjet Shipments Increase

Airplane billings soar 14.3%, helicopters climb 7.6%

Teal Group Sees Double-digit Bizav Market Growth in 2025

While market grew last year and is expected again this year, business aircraft deliveries will flatten out long-term

EBAA Releases EBACE Conference Details for Geneva Show

Three stages will include live discussions about aircraft operations, innovation, and business aviation news

Seaplane Industry Sets Course for Sustainable Revival

There’s no shortage of a need for aircraft that can take off and land on water, supporters say

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN