Lt. Gov. Austin Davis (left) speaks with state Sen. Wayne Langerholc (R-Cambria) and Cambria County Commissioner Tom Chernisky (right) ahead of the opening plenary session of the Airium Summit Thursday at the John Murtha Johnstown Cambria County Airport. Miller photo by Matt Churella
JOHNSTOWN — Every minute that an automated external defibrillator is delayed in activating reduces a person in cardiac arrest by 10 percent.
That’s why it’s crucial to get life-saving medical supplies from point A to point B as quickly and efficiently as possible, he said.
Martinuskas, along with Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and Cambria County Commissioner Tom Chernisky, spoke at the Airium Summit’s opening plenary session on Thursday.
Now in its second year, the summit brought together over 350 industry leaders, stakeholders, professionals and students, providing an opportunity to share ideas, explore innovative opportunities and learn about new and existing technologies. Students had the opportunity to attend breakout sessions, meet with exhibitors and learn about careers in aerospace.
Chernisky said he met with father and son on Wednesday and they weren’t sure what career path they wanted to pursue, but after learning about Nulton Aviation at the summit, they became interested in a career in aviation.
“Economic development at the Johnstown-Cambria County Airport has been discussed and planned for many years, and the Airium Summit marks the turning of those discussions into action,” Chernisky said before introducing keynote speaker Lt. Gov. Austin Davis.
Chernisky noted that earlier this month Governor Davis hosted the first-ever Aerospace Day at the State Capitol, showcasing his commitment to growing the state’s aviation and space industry.
Davis said Aerium fosters relationships with students, educational institutions and the aerospace industry to prepare the next generation of pilots to learn, grow and fly.
“You are creating the workforce of the future,” Governor Davis said at the summit, adding that the Shapiro-Davis Administration is “competitive” with neighboring states such as Ohio and West Virginia.
“That’s why we want to support industries like aviation and aerospace that are growing here in Pennsylvania,” he said. “These industries contribute billions of dollars to our economy, employ thousands of people and provide essential services to our communities.”
While speaking to attendees, Martinuskas and Steve Kocsis, Cambria County’s director of geographic information systems, showed a simulation comparing the use of a drone to a ground vehicle. The drone arrived at its destination about 30 seconds faster than the vehicle. On the surface, that may not seem like a big difference, but every second counts in a medical emergency.
They said Cambria County currently uses drones in certain situations and hopes to implement a system next year that will allow it to fly beyond visual line of sight and reach people further away.
Currently, emergency services personnel can use drones to deliver life-saving medical supplies to the scene faster than emergency response teams can, but drones must be within a three-mile radius of where an emergency occurs to be deployed, county officials said.
Martinuskas and Kocsis said drones can avoid unexpected delays like road closures and get to the scene in nearly half the time it would take an ambulance or fire truck. Kocsis said drones can fly at speeds of 35 miles per hour and up to 400 feet high on their direct flight to the scene.
Earlier this year, the Southern Allegheny Planning and Development Commission was awarded a nearly $2 million grant for the multi-modal transportation project. The funding was awarded as part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Mobility Enhancement and Transportation Reform Grant Program.
Once the new grant-funded system is in place, which Martinuskas said will happen sometime next year, emergency response teams will be able to use drones to deliver automated external defibrillators, Narcan and other blood products from beyond visual line of sight.
Currently, it takes at least two people to operate a drone: a pilot and a visual observer.
Martinuska said drones can only be flown by pilots within visible range of observers, up to a maximum of three miles.
This means that if drones are used to deliver supplies, emergency response teams must drive the drone within a three-mile radius of the caller’s location before deploying it.
“This (new system) will allow us to fly beyond visual line of sight and deliver aid to people who can’t be seen,” Martinuska said.
Martinuska acknowledged that drones may one day be flown remotely from the Cambria County 911 Center in Ebensburg, but said details about where the drones would be dispatched from are “still to be determined.”
“It takes staff and software to do that, but we have the technology now to do it,” he said. “We just haven’t decided where to send them yet.”
State Sen. Wayne Langerholc (R-Cambria) said the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport could also be used as a drone deployment and testing site.
“The possibilities are endless here,” Langerholc said. “This could be a multi-billion dollar industry for our region that not only helps our residents and saves lives, but also employs people in jobs that support their families.”
Mirror staff writer Matt Churella can be reached at 814-946-7520.
