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

Opposition to the city of Cleveland’s efforts to permanently <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2023-01-17/cleveland-explores-shuttering-burke-lakefront-airport">shutter</a> Burke Lakefront Airport (KBKL) is growing, with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) joining the fray as part of the Lakefront Airport Preservation Partnership (LAPP).
Last month, Cleveland mayor Justin Bibb and Cuyahoga County executive Chris Ronayne issued a request to the federal government, asking it to relieve the city of its obligation to operate the airport, which opened in 1947. 
In a letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and several members of Ohio’s congressional delegation, they asked for “partnership and support to begin the formal process—working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and regional stakeholders—of decommissioning Burke Lakefront Airport (BKL) and repurposing this uniquely situated, approximately 450-acre waterfront site for public access and job-creating development.”
The LAPP countered that request with a letter of its own, reminding the legislators and secretary that, according to the nearly $20 million in airport improvement grants given by the FAA and the state of Ohio, KBKL is required to remain open until the late 2030s.
&nbsp;“By accepting these grants, the city has agreed to operate and maintain the airport,” it stated. “Temporary politicians should not be able to ignore or undo commitments made by their predecessors, which will have negative long-term impacts.”
Kyle Lewis, AOPA’s Great Lakes regional manager, noted the airport remains a vital asset to northeast Ohio and the country. “Planes take off and land there more than 50,000 times each year, and the airport serves as an important link for public safety, medevac operations, Coast Guard missions and training, flight training, educational opportunities, and more.”
Lewis added that many of the airports in the area are operating at near or full capacity. "In cases like this, if a public airport is going to close, the entity running that airport—in this case, the city of Cleveland— must prove to the FAA that the closure is in the public's best interest, and they must provide a plan for another local airport to absorb the traffic and infrastructure," he said. "Mayor Bibb has done none of that."

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

AOPA Joins Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport Closure Battle

The city is eyeing the airport's 450 waterfront acres for redevelopment

As the debate to close Cleveland's Burke Lakefront Airport rages on, AOPA has joined the fray.

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News about commercial airlines, including regulations, aircraft orders, safety, acquisitions, and mergers.

News and information about crew, passenger, aircraft and airport security issues.

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

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