Sky Manor Airport in Pittstown, New Jersey was recently awarded the 2010 Gill Robb Wilson Award for outstanding contribution to New Jersey Aviation. The award was given by the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Coalition in recognition of saving the airport.
New Jersey airports have been closing at an alarming rate in recent years, reducing the network of local airports. Roughly half the airports in New Jersey have closed in the last 20 years. Land values have risen to the point that an airport’s land can be worth more to a developer than to the airport owner. Many local airports such as Sky Manor are privately owned and are made available for public use. Local airports are an important part of the state’s transportation system. The purchase of Sky Manor Airport by a dedicated group of pilots ensures its continued use as an airport.
Sky Manor Airport is home to approximately 100 aircraft. These aircraft are used for both business and personal transportation. The airport serves both local pilots and visiting pilots. The airport includes a restaurant, 24-hour self-service fuel, a flight school, a helicopter operation, an aircraft mechanic, and a balloon operation. The airport has a 2,90-foot paved lighted runway with an instrument approach. The airport is open to the public, whether flying in or driving in, and is a popular gathering spot for watching airplanes take off and land.
Gill Robb Wilson was a New Jersey aviation pioneer and former Director of Aviation for New Jersey. He helped form the Civil Air Patrol. He was the aviation editor for the New York Herald Tribune and was a contributing editor to Flying Magazine.
The Mid-Atlantic Aviation Coalition is a state-wide group of pilots and airport owners that are dedicated to promoting aviation in New Jersey.
Sky Manor Airport Partners LLC purchased Sky Manor Airport in 2008. Twenty-six pilots formed the LLC to buy and operate the airport. Since then six more pilots have joined in ownership. More pilot-owners are expected in the future. The airport has a friendly country-airport atmosphere. The airport is run by pilots for pilots, and is known as the “best little airport in the east,” according to airport officials.
I discovered Sky Manor in 1971 after building my home in Clinton, N.J.. Back then Tony and Ruth Tirri had the place and were generous with their time to all airplane buffs, including those like me who are not pilots. I moved to Florida in 1978 and have not visited the airport since then.