Aviation View | April 2021

143 AVIATION VIEW APRIL 2021 Fallingwater is famous the world over as the iconic residence designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in southwest Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands, about 90 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh. A stunning work of art in its own right, the house was built in 1935 partly over a waterfall on Bear Run in the Mill Run section of Stewart Township in Fayette County. Created as a weekend home for the family of Liliane and Edgar J. Kaufmann, owner of Kaufmann’s Department Store, it is listed among Smithsonian’s “Life List of 28 Places to See Before You Die.” Blending seamlessly into the gorgeous natural landscape, Fallingwater stands as one of Wright’s greatest masterpieces – and a beloved destination for enthusiasts worldwide. Those arriving on private aircraft at Joseph A. Hardy Connellsville Airport are only a half hour’s drive away from this legacy of architectural history. FALLINGWATER JOSEPH A . HARDY CONNELLSV I LLE A I RPORT used during World War II by the United States Army Air Force Air Technical Service Command. The Airport remained under federal government control until 1947, when it was returned to the City of Connellsville for use as a public airport. The Fayette County Airport Authority (FCAA) was established in December 1965 to take ownership and management of the facility. A lack of operating funds saw the airport fall into disrepair in the 1980s and ‘90s but a local business tycoon, Joseph ‘Joe’ Hardy recognized the importance of the facility to the community and stepped up with $1 million to help fund the $2.3 million cost of building new hangars. In 2007, it was renamed the Joseph A. Hardy Connellsville Airport, in his honor. John “Bud” Neckerauer, Airport Manager of the Joseph A. Hardy Connellsville Airport, shares, “Joe Hardy has been very good to the airport, since I came in 1984, he’s invested more than a million dollars into it. He’s well into his 90s now, but in appreciation of his great contributions through 84 Lumber, on his 84th birthday they named the