Johnstown–Cambria County Airport

John Murtha Johnstown–Cambria County Airport (IATA: JST, ICAO: KJST, FAA LID: JST) is a civil-military airport three miles (5 km) northeast of Johnstown, in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. It is owned by Johnstown–Cambria County Airport Authority[1] and is named after the late Congressman John Murtha. It sees one airline, subsidized by the Essential Air Service.

John Murtha Johnstown–Cambria County Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerJohnstown–Cambria County Airport Authority
ServesJohnstown, Pennsylvania
Elevation AMSL2,284 ft / 696 m
Coordinates40°18′56″N 078°50′05″W
Websitewww.flyjohnstownairport.com
Maps

FAA Diagram as of January 2021
JST
JST
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
15/33 7,004 2,135 Asphalt
5/23 4,387 1,337 Asphalt
Statistics (2017)
Aircraft operations20,036
Based aircraft54

The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a non-primary commercial service airport (between 2,500 and 10,000 enplanements per year).[2]

Johnstown–Cambria County Airport is home to several military units. The airport houses the Pennsylvania Army National Guard's 1-104th Attack Reconnaissance Battalion (Company's HHC, A, C, D, and E) and Det 1, Company C, 2-104 General Support Aviation Battalion (Air Ambulance). It also houses the 258th Air Traffic Control Squadron (258 ATCS) of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, and Marine Wing Support Squadron 471 (MWSS-471), Detachment A of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing (4th MAW) of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve.[3] The aerial military units fly helicopters rather than fixed-wing aircraft.

Beginning in December 2020, the airport will have United jet service to Chicago-O'Hare and Washington-Dulles.[4]

History

The airport opened in 1948 as Johnstown Municipal Airport,[5] Its first passenger airline flights were TWA DC-3s in 1948; All American Airways replaced TWA in 1949 and successor Allegheny Airlines was replaced by Allegheny Commuter in 1970. US Airways served the airport in the 1990s and 2000s with flights to Pittsburgh International Airport.

Traffic through the airport peaked in 2004 when US Airways flew 21,000 passengers through Johnstown. However, the recession led the weakened US Airways to drop service to Johnstown in 2009, and traffic dropped to near zero.[6] The airport was the subject of controversy in the 2000s when reports showed Democratic Congressman John Murtha had steered $150 million in federal taxpayer dollars to the airport in the 2000s, despite decreasing traffic.[7]

Since US Airways stopped service in 2009, Johnstown has been served by airlines using Essential Air Service funding to connect Johnstown to larger airports. The first was Colgan Air operating flights for United Airlines's United Express service to Washington-Dulles and Altoona. Colgan went bankrupt in 2012, so the EAS contract was picked up by Silver Airways, which flew from Johnstown to Dulles and DuBois. The city complained about Silver Airways's high prices and delays and requested that the EAS contract be awarded to Southern Airways Express. Southern's service began in November 2016 to Pittsburgh and Dulles (later switched to Baltimore-Washington).[6] Southern's service was plagued by pilot and aircraft shortages, and the airport authority recommended the federal Department of Transportation award the contract to Boutique Air, which began service in to Pittsburgh and Baltimore-Washington in November 2018.[8]

In October 2020, the EAS contract was awarded to SkyWest Airlines to bring back jet service to Johnstown. SkyWest will operate as United Express with flights to Chicago-O'Hare and Washington-Dulles beginning in December 2020.[9]

Finances

It has only two scheduled flights and little other activity, but as of January 2016, the airport had received almost $200 million in federal subsidies.[10][11] That funding has not been used to subsidize the facility's operations, including the terminal; it has instead been used to construct a concrete reinforced runway for military purposes and to build military installations near the airport. The airport is in the bottom 28% of all facilities receiving EAS funding.[12] In 2004, an $8 million air traffic radar system was installed at the airport;[11] it is operated by the Pennsylvania Air National Guard.

Facilities

The airport covers 650 acres (263 ha) at an elevation of 2,284 feet (696 m). It has two asphalt runways: 15/33 is 7,004 by 150 feet (2,135 x 46 m) and 5/23 is 4,387 by 100 feet (1,337 x 30 m).[1]

In 2017 the airport had 20,036 aircraft operations, average 55 per day: 47% general aviation, 42% military, and 11% airline. 54 aircraft were then based at the airport: 21 single-engine, 4 multi-engine, 2 jet, 1 helicopter and 26 military.[1]

Airline and destinations

Scheduled passenger flights:

AirlinesDestinationsRefs
United Express Chicago–O'Hare, Washington–Dulles[13] [14]

Statistics
Top domestic destinations: August 2019 – July 2020[15]
Rank City Airport name & IATA code Passengers
1 Pittsburgh, PA Pittsburgh International (PIT) 2,550
2 Baltimore, MD Baltimore–Washington International (BWI) 2,070
Passenger boardings (enplanements) by year, as per the FAA[16]
Year 2009 [17] 2010 [18] 2011 [19] 2012 [20] 2013[21] 2014[22] 2015[23] 2016[24] 2017[25] 2018[26] 2019[27]
Enplanements 7,956 8,457 7,956 6,986 6,186 4,856 4,338 4,193 3,594 4,381 6,309
Change 04.22% 06.30% 05.92% 012.19% 011.45% 021.50% 010.67% 03.34% 014.29% 021.90% 044.01%
Airline Colgan Air dba United Express Colgan Air dba United Express Colgan Air dba United Express Silver Airways dba United Express Silver Airways dba United Express Silver Airways dba United Express Silver Airways Silver Airways Southern Airways Express Southern Airways Express Boutique Air
Destination(s) Washington-Dulles Altoona
Washington-Dulles		 Altoona
Washington-Dulles		 Altoona
Washington-Dulles		 Altoona
Washington-Dulles		 Altoona
Washington-Dulles		 DuBois
Washington-Dulles		 DuBois
Washington-Dulles		 Baltimore
Pittsburgh		 Baltimore
Pittsburgh		 Baltimore
Pittsburgh

Accidents and incidents

References
  1. FAA Airport Form 5010 for JST PDF. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective April 5, 2012.
  2. "2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A" (PDF). National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF, 2.03 MB) on September 27, 2012.
  3. "Murtha Joins in Dedicating New Marine Corps Center". Press Release. Congressman Jack Murtha. December 3, 2000.
  4. Jet Service Launches Dec. 3 in Johnstown with Service to Chicago O'Hare, D.C. Dulles
  5. "History: Timeline". JohnstownCafe.com. Archived from the original on 2014-02-19.
  6. Flood City Folly: How U.S. Taxpayers Funded the “Airport for Nobody”
  7. Welcome to the Airport for Nobody
  8. Boutique Air chosen to serve Johnstown airport
  9. Jet Service Launches Dec. 3 in Johnstown with Service to Chicago O'Hare, D.C. Dulles
  10. Leonnig, Carol D. (April 19, 2009). "Murtha's Earmarks Keep Airport Aloft". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 24, 2009.
  11. "Remote Murtha Airport Lands Big Bucks". CNN. April 23, 2009.
  12. "Airport Fact Sheet". John Murtha Johnstown–Cambria County Airport. Archived from the original on 2010-09-22. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  13. https://www.wearecentralpa.com/news/local-news/john-murtha-johnstown-cambria-airport-switching-airline-carrier/
  14. https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/294230/united-schedules-johnstown-victoria-texas-service-in-4q20/
  15. "RITA - BTS - Transtats".
  16. "Passenger Boarding (Enplanement) and All-Cargo Data for U.S. Airports – Airports". faa.gov. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  17. "2009 Primary, Non-primary Commercial Service, and General Aviation Airports (by State)" (PDF, 891 KB). CY 2009 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data. Federal Aviation Administration. November 23, 2010.
  18. "2010 Primary, Non-primary Commercial Service, and General Aviation Airports (by State)" (PDF, 189 KB). CY 2010 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data]. Federal Aviation Administration. October 4, 2011.
  19. "2011 Enplanements at Primary, Non-primary Commercial Service, and General Aviation Airports (by State)" (PDF). CY 2011 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data]. Federal Aviation Administration. October 9, 2012.
  20. "2012 Enplanements at All Airports (Primary, Non-primary Commercial Service, and General Aviation) by State and Airport" (PDF). CY 2012 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data]. Federal Aviation Administration. October 31, 2013.
  21. "All Airports with CY 2013 Enplanements" (PDF). Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  22. "Calendar Year 2014 Enplanements by State" (PDF).
  23. "Calendar Year 2015 Enplanements by State" (PDF).
  24. "Calendar Year 2016 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF).
  25. "Calendar Year 2017 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF).
  26. "Calendar Year 2018 Final Revenue Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF).
  27. "Preliminary Calendar Year 2019 Enplanements at All Airports" (PDF).

Other sources
  • Essential Air Service documents (Docket OST-2002-11451) from the U.S. Department of Transportation:
    • Order 2002-9-23 (October 1, 2002): selecting Colgan Air, Inc., to provide subsidized Essential Air Service (EAS) at Altoona and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for a two-year period at a combined annual subsidy rate of $847,576.
    • Order 2005-4-9 (April 8, 2005): reselects Colgan Air, Inc., d/b/a U.S. Airways Express, to continue providing essential air service (EAS) at Altoona and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for a two-year period, and establishes a combined subsidy rate of $1,358,551 per year for service consisting of 18 nonstop round trips each week between Altoona and Washington (Dulles), and 18 nonstop round trips each week between Johnstown and Pittsburgh, with 19-seat Beech 1900D aircraft.
    • Order 2007-2-17 (February 16, 2007): selecting Colgan Air Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express, to continue providing essential air service (EAS) at Altoona consisting of 18 weekly nonstop round trips to Washington Dulles, and at Johnstown consisting of 18 weekly nonstop round trips to Pittsburgh. The combined annual subsidy is $2,364,462 based on service with 19-seat Beech 1900D turboprop aircraft for the two-year period beginning June 1, 2007, and all service would be operated as US Airways Express.
    • Order 2008-6-10 (June 10, 2008): re-selecting Colgan Air, Inc. d/b/a United Express, to provide subsidized essential air service (EAS) at Altoona and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, at a total annual subsidy rate of $2,788,845, for the period from June 15, 2008, through June 30, 2010.
    • Order 2010-5-10 (May 10, 2010): selecting Colgan Air Inc., operating as United Express, to provide essential air service (EAS) at Altoona and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for a combined annual subsidy of $3,348,294, for the two-year period from July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2012.
    • Ninety-Day Notice (March 8, 2012): from Colgan Airlines, Inc. of termination of Essential Air Service at Altoona, Pennsylvania, and Johnstown, Pennsylvania
    • Order 2012-3-14 (March 23, 2012): prohibits Colgan Airlines, Inc. d/b/a United Airlines Express, from terminating service at Altoona and Johnstown, PA; Victoria, TX; Staunton, VA; and Beckley, Clarksburg/Fairmont, and Morgantown, WV, for 30 days beyond the end of the 90-day notice period, i.e. July 8, 2012. We are also requesting proposals by April 25, 2012, from air carriers interested in providing replacement Essential Air Service (EAS) at Victoria, TX; and Staunton, VA, for a new term, with or without subsidy.
    • Order 2012-4-30 (April 26, 2012): selecting Silver Airways, formerly Gulfstream International Airways, to provide Essential Air Service (EAS) at Altoona and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, to Washington Dulles International Airport, for a combined annual subsidy of $3,997,187. Service to be provided will be 18 weekly nonstop and one-stop round trips over an Altoona-Johnstown-Washington Dulles or Johnstown-Altoona-Washington Dulles routing using 34-seat Saab 340 aircraft for the two-year period beginning when the carrier begins full EAS at both communities.


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