The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) has joined the Lakefront Airport Preservation Partnership (LAPP), a coalition made up of local businesses, aviation organizations, and schools—to oppose Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s misguided effort to permanently close Burke Lakefront Airport.
Last month, Mayor Bibb asked the federal government to relieve the city of Cleveland of its obligation to keep the airport open. In a letter sent today to Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, Senators Bernie Moreno and Jon Husted, and Representative Shontel Brown, the LAPP highlighted that the FAA and state of Ohio have awarded nearly $20 million in grants to improve the airport—funding that requires Burke Lakefront to remain open until the late 2030s.
“By accepting these grants, the city has agreed to operate and maintain the airport,” the letter states. “Temporary politicians should not be able to ignore or undo commitments made by their predecessors, which will have negative long-term impacts. Simply casting the airport to the wayside and placating to Mayor Bibb’s wishes is not in the best interest of the public, the aviation system, or the City of Cleveland.”
“Burke Lakefront Airport isn’t just used by general aviation pilots—it’s a vital asset to northeast Ohio and the country,” said AOPA Great Lakes Regional Manager Kyle Lewis. “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. For example, just one medevac operator based at Burke Lakefront operates more than 500 medical and organ transplant flights there every year.”
“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,” added Lewis. “Mayor Bibb has done none of that. We’ve checked with other airports in the area. Many of them operate at or near capacity, and none of them can handle the influx of traffic or the expansion of infrastructure needed to support these operations.”
In its letter, the LAPP invited Mayor Bibb to meet with the group to discuss how the airport can continue to play an important role for the city of Cleveland.
