I have written before concerning the alarming situation concerning Hilton Head Island Airport. Hilton Head Island Airport has a runway length of 4300 feet and it has been known for years that in order to accommodate the new regional jets and planes that come into Hilton Head Island Airport, the runway needs to be 5000 feet. We have also known that there are trees that surround the Hilton Head Island Airport that need trimming and/or removing for safety's sake. Last year, our Mayor and Town Council, added an amendment to the Land Management Ordinance which prohibits lengthening the Hilton Head Island Airport runway. This decision was made after many public meetings in which the majority of the residents of Beaufort County and Hilton Head Island were against this amendment to the Land Management Ordinance. The Mayor and Town Council refused to put the matter on the ballot for a vote by the residents of Hilton Head Island and Beaufort County. The Mayor and Town Council refused to listen to the representatives from our Chamber of Commerce, business leaders, Realtors, and residents who understand the importance of the Hilton Head Island Airport to the financial health and well being of this Town and County. Two weeks ago, Delta Airlines announced their departure from Hilton Head Island Airport because it is not profitable for them to take off and land from Hilton Head Island Airport without a full load of passengers. The reason that they can't book a full load of passengers is because of the 4,300 ft runway. It is not safe for them to do otherwise on a 4,300 ft runway due to weight restrictions. The departure of Delta Airlines has brought this matter to the public's attention in spite of the Mayor and Town Council passing the amendment that the runway could not be lengthened last year. Now the county and town are holding several public hearings on the matter of the runway later this month as they prepare to create a master plan to address the issue. Two previous master plans recommended extending the 4,300 foot runway to 5,000 feet so that we can handle regional and corporate jets but the master plan of 2001, left runway length off the table. I am at a loss to try and understand why we keep spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to have studies done and master plans done when the Mayor and the Town pays no attention to what the studies and master plans say. Hilton Head Island has the shortest runway with regularly scheduled commercial service in the continental United States according to the Federal Aviation Administration data. Only Unalaska, Alaska, a small fishing island in Alaska, has a shorter runway at 3,900 feet. The FAA has recommended that Hilton Head Island expand its runway to about 5,000 feet. Some residents who do not understand why the runway issue is so important point to the fact that US Airways continues to operate 8 round-trip flights daily between Hilton Head Island and Charlotte, NC and one flight to Washington, DC on Saturdays during the summer using a Dash 8 aircraft. The reason the runway issue is so important is that US Airways has 50 percent fewer Dash 8 planes in their fleet than they did last year. As these planes are phased out and newer, faster, (not necessarily larger) and more efficient planes are replacing the old Dash 8 planes, Hilton Head will be out in the cold because of the 4,300 foot runway. Another huge concern is that should Hilton Head Island loose all commercial service the FAA would stop pumping money into the airport leaving the county as the primary funding source for the expensive facility. The FAA routinely picks up 95% of the cost to improve airports such as Hilton Head Island, particularly projects that involve safety, i.e, the runway lengthening and cutting and removing trees in the flight path. In my opinion, there can be no question about the value of the Hilton Head Island Airport to the financial health and the economy of this community. Hilton Head Island Airport is in the top three most important assets that our island has to offer. We have already lost real estate sales and tax revenue because potential buyers of real estate and tourists who spend large amounts of money on the island cannot land their planes on Hilton Head Island. Going to Savannah Airport and spending an hour driving over to the island via I95 and HWY 278 is not a choice for these potential buyers and tourists who own planes that can land at other resorts other than Hilton Head Island. The question isn't whether Savannah Airport isn't adequate to handle the island traffic, the point is that many of the visitors and residents of the island do not want to fly into and out of Savannah when we could have a great airport ten minutes from our house and business. My question to our Mayor and Town Council as well as our County Council is "What possible reason could you have NOT to support Hilton Head Island Airport?" I hope that you will let me have your comments and thoughts. If you support our airport, please attend one of the public hearings on the airport master plan which will be held at the Hilton Head Island library, 11 Beach City Road, (near HH Hospital). These hearings will be held: August 27, 1:30 to 6:00 pm August 28 9:00 am to noon August 28 1:30 to 3:00 pm