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

Gama Aviation is in the home stretch on the construction of its $65 million business aviation center at the UAE’s Sharjah International Airport (OMSJ)—a facility it believes will establish a benchmark for private aviation services in the Middle East and beyond.
Sharjah is the birthplace of aviation in the UAE, home to the country’s first established airfield in 1932. While Gama has been providing business aviation ground-handling services in the emirate for more than a decade, its new facility—scheduled to open early next year—will include a 21,500-sq-ft, two-story terminal designed from the ground up to serve private aviation passengers.
Among its slated amenities: onsite immigration and customs services; a luxurious main lounge; private lounges with dedicated entertainment systems, business facilities, and staff attendants; a relaxation area with recliners and ambient lighting; and a cigar bar. Upstairs, an observation bar overlooking the ramp will provide gourmet dining and refreshments.
For crews, it will offer a lounge facing the ramp for preflight briefings and planning, sleep rooms, showers, 24-hour on-demand catering and refreshments for aircrew, and priority parking adjacent to the terminal.
The complex will also offer a 130,000-sq-ft hangar designed to accommodate Gama’s line maintenance operations with multiple OEM-type authorizations, as well as greatly increase the region’s secure aircraft shelter space. With wide-span doors and a clear internal height, it will allow direct taxi-in/taxi-out capability, minimizing the need for towing and allowing faster aircraft turnaround.
With no slot restrictions, uncongested airspace, and a half-hour drive to downtown Dubai, Gama’s services at OMSJ have experienced sustained growth year-over-year.
“We are not building this facility to meet expectations—we are designing it to exceed them,” said Tom Murphy, the company’s managing director of FBO services. “Every detail, from terminal flow to hangar layout, has been created around the client experience: faster transitions, greater privacy, and service excellence that defines the next chapter of Gama Aviation’s story.”

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

Gama Aviation’s New Sharjah FBO On Track for Early 2026 Debut

The $65 million facilty is set to raise the FBO bar high—way high

Gama Aviation’s new FBO/MRO facility at Sharjah International Airport is on track to open early next year.

Gama Readies New Sharjah FBO for Early 2026 Debut

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Amy Wilder

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 expands services and improves sustainability at Asia hub

Jet Aviation Celebrates 30 Years of Growth in Singapore

Charles Alcock

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

Facility includes 30,677-sq-ft hangar and private terminal

Alliance Opens FBO at Saudi Arabia’s AlUla Airport

Remodel expands investment in TBM aircraft support network

Avex Starts $5 Million Remodel at Camarillo Airport

The latest agreement is with Los Angeles-area Long Beach Airport

Sky Harbour Inks Deal for 19th Hangar Location

Kerry Lynch

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

News about simulators and training procedures, as well as workforce.

In this article

Gama Aviation

More In FBOs

Jet Aviation Celebrates 30 Years of Growth in Singapore

Company expands services and improves sustainability at Asia hub

Alliance Opens FBO at Saudi Arabia’s AlUla Airport

Facility includes 30,677-sq-ft hangar and private terminal

Avex Starts $5 Million Remodel at Camarillo Airport

Remodel expands investment in TBM aircraft support network

Sky Harbour Inks Deal for 19th Hangar Location

The latest agreement is with Los Angeles-area Long Beach Airport

NATA Honors Signature Managers for Leadership, Crisis Support

Cope, Thoreck to receive NATA Industry Excellence Leadership Awards

Go Rentals Celebrates 30 Years with Jason Kidd at NBAA-BACE

Sometimes there are moments of pure joy at NBAA-BACE.

Skyservice Opens Permanent FBO in California

Open house is slated for January in Napa Valley

SEA Prime Sees Traffic Boost in Italy’s Milan

Bizav Traffic at the city’s two airports is up 3% over 2024

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN