Saluting airport’s growth | Military connections have field flying high

The Tribune-Democrat

August 06, 2008 08:53 am

— While the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport continues its struggle to boost commercial ridership, it is having no trouble boosting its military might.
That has been good news for our area’s economy.
And there is no question our military installations and their manpower have been good neighbors.
Seven units of the Army National Guard, Army Reserves, Marine Corps, Air National Guard and Department of Military and Veterans Affairs call the airport home, and it was announced recently that yet another runway project will get under way next month in anticipation of the facility’s becoming the second home for the 171st Air Refueling Wing of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard. The unit is based in Pittsburgh.
Reconstruction of the airport’s main runway was completed recently, part of a $14.5 million project, and now work crews will return in September to build an aircraft turnaround at the main runway’s south end. The job, funded by the Army Corps of Engineers, will pave the way for flights in and out by the 171st wing.
The idea is that the Guard unit can operate from Johnstown when the Pittsburgh airfield can’t be used.
It makes sense. The Richland Township airport has seen a total reconstruction over the past decade, including a newly built terminal. Its runway facilities can handle the landings of presidential and fighter jets, and it’s home to an $8.6 million high-tech digital-radar system, the centerpiece for a world-class air-traffic control facility for the Air National Guard.
The Johnstown airport, it would appear, is a melting pot for the different branches of the armed forces. We wonder whether that isn’t worthy of some kind of military-basedesignation.
Any suggestions?