Aviation View | April 2021

110 AVIATION VIEW APRIL 2021 Manage your risk. Maximize your perfomance. OVER 1 2 5 YEAR S OF EXCEP T I ONAL CL I ENT S ERV I CE Insurance | Risk Management | Employee Benefits ehd-ins.com | 800.438.2525 At EHD - one of the region’s largest and most trusted privately held insurance brokers- we put our experience and resources to work to reduce your total cost of risk and strengthen your bottom line. Learn more about the strategic advantages of partnering with EHD by calling toll free at 800.438.2525. a great working relationship with our airport insurer, Engle, Hambright & Davies. We try to think of it all as a partnership.” Like many airports, the Reading Regional Airport, also known as General Carl A. Spaatz Field, has gone through the ups and downs of the last century of air travel. Built as a small airport in 1938, three miles northwest of Reading in Berks County, PA, it was taken over by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1942. The Reading Army Airfield trained tactical reconnaissance units there and it also included a 300-bed hospital. The site even had a prisoner of war camp set up. At the end of the war, it became an Air Force Reserve Base, and in 1950, the city took it over and it became the Reading Municipal Airport. They built a new and modern terminal, upgrading the facilities to meet the need of modern commercial air service. By the 1960s, this airport hosted the largest air show in the United States, with over 100,000 attending at its peak. Again, changes in the economy and the culture led to its decline. The air show ended in 1998. Commercial travel was declining as well and following 9/11 dropped to seven flights. In 2004 commercial aviation ceased altogether. “Here we are 15 years later, growing again and hoping for a bright future,” says Sroka, pointing out that the airport has maintained its Part 139 certification. “In 2020 we completed several capital improvement projects. We have done rehabilitation mill and overlay work on both the north and the west aprons. As you can imagine this was a rather large project. In 2021, we are going to be rehabilitating the main terminal apron which is currently in the design phase. We will have federal and state grants to allow us to do this, and it needs to be done. It is the oldest piece of asphalt at the airport and is going to end up being about a $1.5 million project.” Recently, the airport received grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to purchase a new firefighting gear. There was also a grant to purchase airfield maintenance