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

H.L. Sonny Callahan Airport (KCQF) in Fairhope, Alabama, now has a new aircraft service provider with the opening of Flightline First. The company, which has operated an FBO at New Orleans Lakefront Airport (KNEW) since 2007, was the winning bid in the airport’s RFP process among eight applicants.
Continental Services, a division of aircraft engine maker Continental Aerospace Technologies, was the lone service provider on the field but the company decided it no longer wished to be in the FBO business.
Continental had occupied a 40-year-old terminal building on the West side of the field, but the airport recently completed construction of a $3 million, 4,000-sq-ft replacement on the east side. It includes a pilot lounge with a pair of snooze rooms, shower facilities, 10-seat conference room, refreshment bar, kitchen, concierge, and crew car.
The Titan Fuels-branded facility also has 24,000 sq ft of hangar space that can accommodate up to midsize business jets. The 10,000- and 14,000-sq-ft hangars are located on the west side of the field adjacent to the old terminal, which will be retained to house a flight school. The FBO is open from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m., seven days a week.
“We’re thrilled to officially open our new FBO and to begin this exciting chapter in partnership with the city of Fairhope and the Fairhope Airport Authority,” company co-owner Ethan McDonald told AIN. “Our goal is to provide exceptional service to our customers and contribute to the growth and development of this vibrant aviation community. We look forward to fostering strong relationships and being a part of the continued success here at Fairhope Airport.”

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

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