Vertiports for drones proposed for Arnold Palmer Regional, Johnstown airports

Airport officials in Westmoreland and Cambria counties envision creating a facility for a drone that could deliver cargo, fly passengers or transport a patient to a hospital in an electric-powered aircraft that can take off and land vertically, just like a helicopter.

“The possibilities are endless. We have all the infrastructure needed for a vertiport, and we have the space,” as well as the utilities, roadways and charging stations, said Gabe Monzo, executive director of the Westmoreland County Airport Authority, which operates the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity.

The creation of a vertiport on airport property for electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing aircraft would combine the resources of the two regional airports, Monzo said.

“What part are we going to play in this big realm of aviation?” Monzo said this week during a presentation to about 110 students from local schools who will participate in a contest to design a vertiport at both airports.

The aircraft can be powered by hybrid electric systems, batteries or even hydrogen fuel cells. They are part of what is referred to as advanced air mobility — a new sector of the aerospace industry.

Monzo envisions a package-delivery company such as Amazon getting an order in the morning, then using one of the aircraft to pick up the package from a warehouse such as the one in New Stanton for delivery to a customer’s driveway that day.

For people with a medical emergency, an air ambulance could be controlled from a distance to pick up a patient who received first aid on the ground, said Larry Nulton, a Johnstown psychologist who operates Aerium. The nonprofit seeks to create a pipeline between students, educational institutions and the aviation industry. That patient would be placed in a pod, then picked up by a cable attached to a drone and flown to a nearby medical facility, Nulton said.

Although a vertiport could be placed in other locales because it does not need long runways and taxiways, Monzo said the best site would be at an airport.

“We have all the infrastructure needed for a vertiport, and we have the space,” he said. The utilities and roadways already exist at an airport, as well as hangars to store aircraft.”

Multi-purpose

The primary purposes of the vertiport at Arnold Palmer Regional would be to deliver cargo and transport passengers, possibly for medical purposes, Monzo said.

A vertiport at the John Murtha-Johnstown-Cambria County Airport near Johnstown would be for maintenance, delivering packages and training personnel to operate the vertiport, said Cory Cree, manager of that airport.

The Arnold Palmer and John Murtha airports could become test sites in Pennsylvania for vertiports, said Nulton, who operates Nulton Aviation Services at the Murtha airport.

The use of manned aircraft drones could be something that might be available this year, but the use of fully unmanned craft might not occur until 2035 because of the regulations, Nulton said.

None of Pennsylvania’s 120 aviation facilities have vertiports, said David Heath, a consultant for the Aviation Council of Pennsylvania, an aviation trade association.

“Vertiports essentially are the next phase of advanced aviation,” Heath said.

Design contest

The proposal for creating a vertiport at both airports is the focus of a design a contest among about 110 middle school and high school students in the gifted program from the Mt. Pleasant Area, Yough, Greensburg Salem, Penn-Trafford, Franklin Regional and Southmoreland school districts.

Once a concept and design is created, Monzo said, it could be presented state and federal aviation officials for possible funding.

The kind of project students will be designing emphasizes STEM subjects — Science, Technology, Engineering and Math — said Maureen Grace, gifted program teacher for Mt. Pleasant Area’s junior and senior high school. Grace helped develop the student project.

Last year, the students worked on a design of the expansion of the terminal for the Arnold Palmer airport. That work will occur through a $22 million project given the greenlight by the Westmoreland County Airport Authority, which operates the airport.

“I think (the airport) is one of the interesting things that we have in Westmoreland County,” Grace said.

Among the students who will be working on the design over the next five months will Rhiannon Bowman, an 11th grade student at Mt. Pleasant Area.

“It’s interesting that in 10 years, it will be something we will be using all the time,” Bowman said.

Lucas Poole, a 10th grader at Mt. Pleasant Area, said he the focus on the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft may spark an interest in aviation.

“We might inspire the next generation of pilots,” Poole said. “This is our future.”