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

Clay Lacy Aviation has broke ground on its a $100 million FBO complex at California’s John Wayne Airport (KSNA) in Orange County. The Los Angeles-based service provider was awarded a 35-year lease on the field in <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2020-09-17/orange-county-supervisors-award-fbo-leases-sna">2020</a>&nbsp;as part of the airport’s general aviation <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-06-26/orange-county-approves-ga-restructuring-sna">restructuring plan</a>.
“Clay Lacy is the first of three fixed-base operators at the airport who will help us transform the entire landscape of John Wayne Airport,” said KSNA director Charlene Reynolds at Thursday's ceremony. “The large public-private collective investment not only helps our community, but our regional economy as well.”
The 14-acre facility will offer 41,800 sq ft of passenger terminal and office space, along with four hangars totaling 145,000 sq ft of space—capable of sheltering ultra-long-range business jets—and 6.7 acres of ramp. It will also feature a purpose-built home for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department air support unit. Phase One, which includes the first pair of hangars, is expected to be operational by mid-2026.
Upon opening, the facility will be the first FBO to receive ISI Envision Gold certification from the Institute of Sustainable Infrastructure. It will be certified carbon neutral with solar panels, EV charging, and high-capacity electric aircraft charging to support eVTOL and hybrid-electric aircraft. It will continue to offer sustainable aviation fuel.
“[The FBO] will enhance and support the entire aviation ecosystem and pay it forward to the next generation of aviators and aviation professionals to live, to work, and to thrive here in Orange County,” said Clay Lacy Aviation owner and chairman Brian Kirkdoffer. “This development is an investment in new and emerging air mobility technologies that will put Orange County at the forefront of the aviation industry with thoughtfully better, sustainable facilities.”

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

Clay Lacy Aviation Starts Construction on Its New FBO at KSNA

The facility will lean heavily towards sustainability

Clay Lacy Aviation has begun construction on its new $100 million FBO at California’s John Wayne Airport in Orange County.

Clay Lacy Aviation Starts Construction on New KSNA FBO

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

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

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.

OEMs and FBOs talk about how electric aircraft can be accommodated at FBOs

NATA Panel Examines FBO Preparation for eVTOL Service

In this article

Clay Lacy Aviation

More In FBOs

NATA Panel Examines FBO Preparation for eVTOL Service

OEMs and FBOs talk about how electric aircraft can be accommodated at FBOs

NATA Conference Panel Examines FBO Consolidation

While the big chains take a more selective approach, others remain hungry

Atlantic Aviation Gets Lease Renewal Approval in Aspen

The decision is the latest in a nearly two-year saga at the airport

Clay Lacy Aviation Gets Nod for Sun Valley FBO

Construction is expected to begin next year

Florida FBO Takes Giant Service Provider Chain to Court

The suit claims breach of contract and fraud

GateOne FBO Group Adds Fifth Location

JetWest will be the company's first facility in the Golden State

Third FBO To Land at Toronto Hamilton Airport

Facility will be operated by charter provider FlyXcite

Signature Shows Off 'Minnesota Nice' in St. Paul

The FBO chain acquired the facility and its customer care culture in 2007

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN