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

The city council in Mesa, Arizona, approved the implementation of <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2026-03-13/landing-fees-take-center-stage-two-us-airports">landing fees</a> at Falcon Field Airport (KFFZ) this week, a move airport stakeholders allege was conducted “without meaningful collaboration with the operators, schools, and businesses most affected.”
In addition to its normal general aviation activity, KFFZ is a hive of flight training with more than a dozen providers calling it home. Counting VFR piston aircraft traffic, the airport is the busiest general aviation facility in the country, logging nearly 480,000 operations last year.
Some in the industry believe the new fees are motivated by local noise complaints and will serve as a tax on training activities, one that will inevitably pass on to customers.
In a letter to the city council, Thrust Flight, one of the major training providers at KFFZ, expressed disappointment over the ruling, describing it as a new financial barrier at an airport that has long served as a critical entry point for aviation professionals.
“A policy that charges by each landing hits that activity directly and makes the path to certification more expensive and more difficult for the people trying to enter the industry,” the company said, adding that it will affect the entire airport ecosystem. “When policy makes training less viable, the effects spread quickly across instructors, maintenance providers, fuel sales, support staff, and the many businesses tied to airport operations.”

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

Mesa City Council Approves Landing Fees for Falcon Field 

Some believe new fees are motivated by noise complaints

The city council in Mesa, Arizona, has approved the implementation of landing fees at Falcon Field Airport (KFFZ).

Mesa City Council Approves Falcon Field Landing Fees 

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Hanneke Weitering

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

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.

Fixed system detects foreign object debris without vehicle patrols

Skylark Brings AI FOD Detection to Airports

Matt Thurber

News about bills, laws, regulations and other governmental decisions affecting aviation and aerospace. Topics include FAA re-authorizations, taxes on fuel and aviation activities, environmental legislation, ICAO decisions, governmental mediation of labor conflicts and World Trade Organization disputes and decisions.

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.

News and issues concerning general aviation, specifically airplanes and helicopters powered by piston and alternative engines (i.e., non-turbine powered aircraft). Subjects include aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.

Agency issued a general notice to highlight the change

FAA Mandates Radar for Airplane, Helicopter Separation

Private funding sped up the process to add new IFR procedures

Monmouth Airport Deploys LPV Instrument Approaches

Charles Alcock

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

Movements at airports including Stansted, Luton, Birmingham, and Biggin Hill are being examined

Police Probe Epstein Private Jet Flights at UK Airports 

Projects are slated to wrap up later this year

Upgrades on Tap for North Carolina Genav Airport

Two-thirds of those surveyed want to keep KSMO,  and a majority do not want it turned it into a park

Santa Monica Voters Show Support To Keep Airport Open

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

More In Airports

Skylark Brings AI FOD Detection to Airports

Fixed system detects foreign object debris without vehicle patrols

FAA Mandates Radar for Airplane, Helicopter Separation

Agency issued a general notice to highlight the change

Monmouth Airport Deploys LPV Instrument Approaches

Private funding sped up the process to add new IFR procedures

Police Probe Epstein Private Jet Flights at UK Airports

Movements at airports including Stansted, Luton, Birmingham, and Biggin Hill are being examined

Upgrades on Tap for North Carolina Genav Airport

Projects are slated to wrap up later this year

Santa Monica Voters Show Support To Keep Airport Open

Two-thirds of those surveyed want to keep KSMO, and a majority do not want it turned it into a park

Doubts Raised over EU Border Control Rule Changes

Requirements apply to some but not all business aircraft flights

Gulfstream G500, G600 Get EASA Steep-approach Nods

European permissions augment FAA approvals received in 2023 and 2024

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