Barber Airport

The airport has two runways, both made of turf. Runway 18/36 measures 3500 x 80 ft (1067 x 24 m) and runway 9/27 measures 2088 x 130 ft (636 x 40 m). For the 12-month period ending July 23, 2020, the airport averages 12,410 aircraft operations, an average of 34 per day. This includes 99% general aviation and <1% military. For the same time period, 26 aircraft were based at the airport, all single-engine airplanes.[1][2][3]

Though there is a fixed-base operator at the airport, it does not sell fuel, and services are limited.[3][6]

The airport is home to Canton Air Sports, which manages a skydiving drop zone at the airport and offers skydiving lessons for new jumpers. The facility is open from April to November each year.[3][7][8]

• On August 12, 1998, an Aeronca Champion 7FC was substantially damaged when it struck trees and impacted terrain while on approach to the Barber Airport. A witness reported watching the airplane perform touch-and-go landings at Barber. On the fourth landing attempt, the airplane extended its downwind leg and looked "very low" on final approach. On final, as it approached the Berlin Lake, the aircraft impacted trees and suddenly pitch nose down with no pitch changes prior to the impact. The probable cause of the accident was found to be the pilot's failure to maintain altitude/clearance during the approach which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees.[9]
• On September 1, 2007, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A glider crashed while on approach to the Barber Airport. The pilot, who normally set the altimeter to zero prior to takeoff, distracted during the preflight and forgot to reset the altimeter, which was set to field elevation, approximately 1,000 feet. This resulted in the pilot releasing from the tow 1,000 feet lower than what he thought he was. The pilot stated the glider hit the tops of trees while on final approach. The probable cause of the accident was found to be the pilot's inattentiveness during the aircraft preflight and his failure to maintain clearance above the trees.[10]
• On November 1, 2007, a Piper PA-28 crashed during landing at the Barber Airport. The airplane did not decelerate as the pilot depressed the toe brake pedals, although he felt pressure through the pedals. The pilot realized that the airplane was going to run off the end of the runway and decided to shutdown the engine and turnoff the master electrical switch. He was "standing on the brakes as hard as possible" when the airplane impacted an airport perimeter fence, traveled through a ditch, and onto a nearby road. The probable cause of the accident was found to be the pilot's inadvertent activation of the parking brake, which resulted in the toe brakes becoming ineffective.[11]