At a celebration on Jan. 8, 2015, the Manassas Regional Airport cut a ribbon on a new exhibit celebrating 50 years of service to the community. More than 100 people attended the celebrationand toured of the exhibit. The exhibit includes an historical timeline of the airport, and aerial photos, both historic and current.
The Manassas Regional Airport was dedicated in its current location on Sept. 20, 1964. Prior to this location, beginning in 1932 the Airport had a landing strip located at what is now Manaport Shopping Center. Pilots had to navigate over power lines to land on the grass runways. As the area developed, the Airport was moved to its current location.
Today the Airport has two runways, one at 6,200 feet and one at 3,700 feet. There are 26 businesses located on the Airport and 415 aircraft based there. It is the busiest General Aviation Airport in the Commonwealth and is designated as a National General Aviation Airport by the FAA. Only 84 airports in the United States have this designation.
An Economic Benefit Study conducted in 2011 by the Virginia Department of Aviation stated that the Manassas Regional Airport has an economic impact of $234 million for the City of Manassas, Prince William County, Manassas Park and parts of Fairfax County. The study also concluded that the Airport was credited with producing 1,056 jobs at an approximate payroll of $70 million.
http://patch.com/virginia/manassas/manassas-regional-airport-celebrates-50-years-1