JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Hands-on aircraft maintenance classes are set to begin next month inside a hangar-turned-classroom, Johnstown-Cambria County Airport Authority officials said.
St. Francis University is planning an Aug. 29 ribbon-cutting to mark the occasion, said Larry Nulton, of airport fixed-base operator Nulton Aviation Services.
Nulton Aviation Services and St. Francis University have partnered over the past year to bring the 21-month aircraft maintenance program to fruition – aiming to develop a homegrown workforce that's able to help address a nationwide shortage of aircraft repair technicians.
"St. Francis did a great job on the space," Nulton told members of the airport authority, describing it as a mixture of classroom and laboratory space, providing enough room for students to work on aircraft and their components.
Brother Marius Strom, who has an aeronautical engineering background and leads St. Francis University's Aviation/Aviation Maintenance Technician program, said the lab is equipped with "up-to-date, modern components, so when students finish, they will be able to go right into manufacturing or maintenance careers."
The facility is ready to go, and final touches are being completed to finalize the curriculum, Strom said.
"We're looking forward to this new chapter for our university, and a new opportunity for the local community," he said.
Investment action
In other business, with two short-term certificates of deposit maturing this month, airport officials voted to split the combined $1 million in funds into three separate CD investments to bring in additional revenue over the coming year.
The board approved three separate CDs with Johnstown-based AmeriServ Financial.
That will bring a 5.25% return over six months on the largest, $500,000 CD. The other two, at $250,000 each, will yield 4.75% and 4.5% over longer periods – 12 and 18 months, respectively.
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