EDITOR:
The Johnstown-Cambria County Airport of Pennsylvania, dubbed the "Airport to Nowhere," has received approximately $200 million in our taxpayer's money over the past decade.
Included in this are:
$18 million for a runway that will accommodate any current aircraft, $14 million for a hangar, $7 million for a traffic control tower and, $8 million in 2004 for an air traffic radar system that as of April 2009 has never been used, and recently it has received $800,000 from the stimulus fund to re-surface an alternate runway.
There are approximately 69 aircraft, civilian plus military, based at this facility.
The commercial operation consists of three nonstop flights (three departures, three arrivals) on weekdays between Johnstown and Washington Dulles Airport, a distance of approximately 180 miles. Passenger traffic averages about 20 people per day with the taxpayers paying fare subsidies of about $100 per passenger per flight.
All of this funding of the taxpayer's money is through the efforts of U.S. Congressional Rep. John P. Murtham, D-Pa.
Maybe our county commissioners should be seeking support and assistance from our congressmen; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Sen. John Ensign, and Rep. Dean Heller in the hassle with the FAA over the weight ordinance at our airport.
Per Jon Hannan's article in The Record-Courier of Aug. 12, the evaluation requested by commissioner Doug Johnson in January 2008 supported the 30,000/50,000-pound weight ordinance and indicated prior studies did not follow FAA guidelines.
A revision to the existing ordinance should not be made until the issue of the conflicting weight bearing capabilities reports of the runways and taxiways has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties.
Maybe, with the support and assistance of our congressmen, the FAA will accept the evaluation supporting the 30,000/50,000-pound limit and fulfill the desires of the voters of Douglas County.
Sanford E. Deyo
Minden
