Greensboro's Air Harbor Airport Going Strong

Ron Murphy gave up his longtime career in aircraft maintenance to be at home more with his sick wife. Airplanes were in his blood, though. When he heard that the old Air Harbor Airport in Greensboro, which opened in 1946, was up for sale, Murphy jumped at the chance to get back into his beloved field.

He bought the airport in 1999 and immediately began making improvements. After his wife's death, he found himself spending more and more time there.

"I bought it with the intention of working part time, but now I'm there all the time," he said.

An airport which serves small, general aviation aircraft, Air Harbor Airport also offers aircraft storage, maintenance and fuel, as well as flight training.

"We serve flight trainers up through light twin-engine aircraft," he said.

The airport is on 36 acres on Air Harbor Road.

Murphy said the airport stays busy with local pilots and averages one to two out-of-state aircraft per week. "The weekend of the Women's NCAA, we had four transit airplanes from out of state come in," Murphy said.

Murphy stays busy working on landscaping and hopes to renovate the office and build some new hangars in the future.

Murphy said the most enjoyable aspects of his job include seeing a new pilot get his certificate and seeing the final product after an aircraft's repairs are completed.

A pilot himself, Murphy has been flying for 34 years and still flies one or two days a week. He learned to fly when he was working in aircraft maintenance and was offered flight training at a reduced price.

"When you get up in the air, you have complete peace of mind," he said. "It's such a good feeling."

Contact Jennifer Atkins Brown at 574-5582 or