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William T. Piper Memorial Airport is a small, city-owned general aviation field two miles east of Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, tucked between the West Branch Susquehanna River and the foot of Bald Eagle Mountain ridge. Named for William T. Piper, it was for decades the home of Piper Aircraft Corporation and remains a magnet for Piper enthusiasts through its museum and annual fly-in.
William T. Piper Memorial Airport (KLHV) is a city-owned public-use general aviation aerodrome serving Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. It carries the name of William T. Piper, whose Piper Aircraft Corporation built light aircraft at this site before relocating to Vero Beach, Florida, and the field's continuing association with Piper aircraft, its on-site museum and its summer fly-in make it a notable destination for owners and pilots of classic Piper types, particularly Cubs.
The airport lies two miles east of the city of Lock Haven in Clinton County, Pennsylvania, at the foot of the Bald Eagle Mountain ridge, sandwiched between the West Branch Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Creek. It is an uncontrolled field with no operating control tower; the nearest tie-in flight service station is Williamsport (IPT). New York Center coverage in the area can be reached on 134.8 MHz.
The airport has two parallel physical runways aligned roughly east-west. Runway 09L/27R is 3,782 feet long with a hard surface and is lit, offering 09L at 3,782 feet and 27R at 3,317 feet of usable length in the respective directions. Runway 09R/27L is a grass strip 2,192 feet long and unlit. There is no ILS.
Traffic at Lock Haven should monitor and call on the CTAF/UNICOM frequency of 122.8 MHz, as there is no control tower. Pilots transiting the wider area may also work New York Center on 134.8 MHz. The field is not equipped with an instrument landing system.
As an uncontrolled airport, arriving traffic should self-announce on the CTAF and integrate with any other aircraft in the pattern using standard left-hand or right-hand patterns as appropriate to the runway in use: left-hand traffic for runways 09L and 09R, and right-hand traffic for runways 27R and 27L. A wind indicator and segmented circle are provided on the field to help pilots determine the active runway and pattern direction.
The airport sits in a distinctive setting that aids visual identification: it lies along the West Branch Susquehanna River, with Bald Eagle Creek and the base of the Bald Eagle Mountain ridge close by. The city of Lock Haven itself, immediately to the west, is a further useful landmark when inbound from that direction.
The airport takes its name from William T. Piper, and Piper Aircraft Corporation manufactured aircraft at this location before the company relocated to Vero Beach, Florida. The Piper Aviation Museum, at the southwest end of the airport, preserves this history and legacy. Every summer the field hosts a Piper fly-in at which large numbers of Piper aircraft and their pilots gather, Piper Cubs being especially prominent, drawing public visitors to both the fly-in and the adjacent museum. The airport has also seen serious incidents over the years, including a fatal crash in June 2010 when a chartered Cessna 210 went down in a neighbourhood just off the west end of runway 9L/27R after reporting low fuel, and a June 2014 accident in which a vintage 1936 Taylor J-2 attending the fly-in crashed shortly after takeoff, with the occupants escaping injury.
The airport remains a general aviation facility owned and operated by the City of Lock Haven, with paved taxiways, tie-down areas and a runway lighting system on the hard runway. Facilities include T-hangar spaces available for lease and a terminal building with a flight planning room. AvSport of Lock Haven, a flight school specialising in Sport Pilot training in Light Sport Aircraft, operated at the field until its owner closed operations in June 2024 to relocate to California. The Piper Aviation Museum continues to operate on the airport grounds, and the field remains the venue for an annual Piper fly-in that draws visiting aircraft and pilots each summer.
