John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport

4 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 11 A groundbreaking addition coming to the Laurel Highlands region of Western Pennsylvania, the Mid-Atlantic Opportunity Park is a state-of-the-art aviation business cluster adjacent to John Murtha Johnstown- Cambria County Airport that brings about new opportunities for the region in a variety of multimodal industries. With development led by Cambrian Hills Development Group, the 130-acre Opportunity Park was designed to create an ecosystem for aerospace companies, providing a steady stream of qualified talent, parts and services in a community and state known for one of the country’s friendliest business environments. Anchoring the Opportunity Park will be a state-of-the-art, 100,000-square-foot Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility capable of accommodating narrow- body airline and corporate aircraft. With a strong network of public- private support, the Opportunity Park has secured a Keystone Opportunity Zone designation – one of the premier development incentives in the nation. Its location in the heart of the northeastern United States offers easy access to major metropolitan clusters, positioning it as a hub for aviation/aerospace growth. The Opportunity Park is the culmination of a concentrated effort to strengthen the region’s workforce pipeline, stimulate economic development and establish Western Pennsylvania as a prominent destination for the aviation industry. Learn more at www.theopportunitypark.com . This dynamic airport is a combination airport, featuring both civil and military flights, located about five miles from the City of Johnstown in central Pennsylvania. Its namesake is the late member of the United States House of Representatives who served the Keystone State’s 12th Congressional District. We recently spoke with John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport Manager Cory Cree, and he told us more about what is in store for this commercial- service airport. Cree relays that the airport boasts daily, non-stop, round-trip flights to Dulles International in Washington, D.C., and O’Hare International in Chicago. The regional SkyWest Airlines operates 50-seat jets out of Murtha, doing business as United Express. This is funded through the Essential Air Service Program through the U.S. Department of Transportation. “We provide service for business and leisure travel here at the airport for our community,” says Cree. “Our community is Cambria County and beyond. We have approximately 29 GA (general aviation) aircraft based here.” He adds that the airport leases hangars to aircraft owners for storage of their planes as well. “We have some tenants that are very active flyers,” Cree informs, “and then we have some tenants that fly less often.” He says Nulton Aviation Services (NAS) is the airport’s full-service FBO or fixed-based If you are a student at St. Francis, you can also take the pilot training program through St. Francis to obtain your pilot’s license