Free Republic

It’s easy to throw around big numbers when talking about the federal tax dollars that fly into John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport. But calling it waste because commercial ridership has dipped misses the bigger picture, local airport and business leaders say. Economic development, job creation and military programs rely on the airport’s success. A Washington Post article published April 19 called it a “testament to (U.S. Rep. John) Murtha’s ability to tap streams of federal money.” The story brought a parade of other reporters to the local tarmac chasing the same story on Johnstown’s “little-used” airport. “What the (national) media...

More news about the Pork King's Swine filled airport. If you remember John Murtha who has turned congressional earmarks into an art-form directed two-hundred million of your tax dollars to the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport. Actually ghost town is a better description than Airport, Murtha Airport gets a total of THREE commercial flights a day. This tribute to the Living Pork King John Murtha is literally the airport to nowhere. But there's more. Today the WAPO announced that Murtha Airport Got Military Upgrades. The Pentagon spent millions on Murtha Airport for projects that have never been used for their...

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. -- At the behest of House Defense Appropriations Chairman John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), the Pentagon has spent about $30 million equipping a little-used airport named for the congressman so that it can handle behemoth military aircraft and store combat equipment for rapid deployment to foreign battlefields. Most of the expensive improvements, funded through appropriations approved by Murtha's committee, have not been used for their intended purpose. The projects delighted National Guard and reserve units based in Murtha's Pennsylvania district who have suffered from budget cuts, but critics charge that the expenditures are a waste of taxpayer dollars. Murtha...

JOHNSTOWN, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- Located outside a small Pennsylvania city, John Murtha airport may not see many passengers. But it's seen plenty of arrivals of tax dollars from Washington, most recently economic stimulus funds.   The airport offers three commercial flights. In between the arrivals and departures, airport officials admit there are few faces around the facility. "When the flights are coming in, there are people. Other than that, it's empty," said Scott Voelker, manager of the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport.But one face is everywhere. Rep. John Murtha, the airport's namesake, is hard to miss.Considered one of "the kings...