For more than 120 years, Rose Metal Industries has been a family-owned fixture of Cleveland manufacturing, designing and manufacturing precision tooling used to produce aircraft engine components for customers around the country.

CEO Robert Rose began flying in 2006, intentionally training at BKL due to its busy, tower-controlled commercial aviation environment and challenging conditions such as crosswinds that make for the best pilot training.

General aviation enables him to reach customers in locations that are not easily served via commercial airlines, such as Madisonville, Kentucky, where one of his primary customers is located. Flying directly by small aircraft eliminates multiple commercial flights, rental cars, overnight stays, and countless more hours of lost productivity into a same-day business trip.

Despite Burke’s strategic location, Rose cannot keep his aircraft there due to a lack of general aviation hangar space. According to Rose, years of limited investment in appropriate facilities, like the city’s refusal to approve additional T-hangars, have forced many to take their business elsewhere. Rose argues that this is not an annoyance only for pilots, but an economic issue affecting Cleveland businesses that rely on aviation to remain competitive. He moved his own aircraft to Cuyahoga County Airport but notes that growing demand there has also reduced capacity for general aviation users.

For Rose Metal Industries, Burke Lakefront Airport is far more than an economic engine. It is an asset that helps manufacturers compete, support local jobs, and strengthen Greater Cleveland’s ability to attract and retain businesses that depend on efficient regional connectivity. As Robert Rose says, if the city realizes the commercial and business activity BKL creates, Cleveland could bring a “different type of enthusiasm” to an entire region.