Cleveland Airport board names Erin Gordon new airport director; former director to assist transition

The Cleveland Municipal Airport Board introduced Erin Gordon as its new airport director and said she will begin work Feb. 18.

Board members and staff described Gordon as an operations supervisor from George Bush Intercontinental Airport with prior experience as an Atlas Air flight attendant. Scott Swaggart, Cleveland city manager, said Gordon will take over daily airport operations and that outgoing airport director “Dickie” has agreed to help with a handoff so ongoing projects continue uninterrupted.

The board called the hiring part of its effort to rebuild a full operations team at the airport after the departure of the previous director. Swaggart said the city conducted interviews and selected Gordon from a pool of applicants; Gordon thanked the board and described plans to “hit the ground running.”

Gordon described her background at Bush Intercontinental and in airline operations: “I hail from Houston, Texas… I’m coming from Bush Intercontinental Airport. I’m currently a supervisor there on the operations team.” She told the board she has three promotions in three years at that facility and several relevant certifications.

Board members said Dickie has kept extensive records and procedures that will be transferred to Gordon. Scott Swaggart and other board members said Dickie agreed to return temporarily to walk Gordon through the airport’s organized documentation and to introduce her to vendor and FAA contacts. Swaggart said those contacts include relationships Dickie maintained through conferences and other industry events, and that existing reservations and conference registrations will be transferred into Gordon’s name where appropriate.

The board framed the handoff as practical continuity: ongoing items such as the RNAV GPS approach to Runway 34, runway lighting and other capital or maintenance work will be covered in the transition. Swaggart and board members said the airport’s documentation is organized and that public works and other city staff will support operational maintenance as needed.

Gordon’s official start date, Feb. 18, was announced to the board; she did not outline a formal multiweek transition schedule in the meeting but the board said Dickie will be available to assist as needed.

The board did not take any separate recorded formal vote during the introduction beyond earlier personnel steps reported by staff.