Airmen, Please help the avert a potential funding crisis here in NH. You will find a link to print the letter below with your personal contact information.

Dear Senator D'Allesandro

The 2008-2009 New Hampshire State Budget will soon be coming before the Senate for review and approval. I would like to call to your attention the NHDOT Bureau of Aeronautics Budget, particularly line item, Class 97, Grants – Joint State and Local. This line item, $125,000, in FY 2008 and $135,000 in FY2009will be used under a "50-50" matching funds program set up by the Board of Aeronautics to help support the 13 privately-owned, public-use airports across our state.

In a 2003 statewide "Aviation Airport System Plan" and in a 2004 report entitled "the Preservation of Privately Owned Airports", prepared for the Governor and Executive Council, it was shown that the funding for these 13 public-use, non-federally funded airports is deficient and has substantially declined since 1988. In past years, the $24,000 in available grant money from NHDOT Bureau of Aeronautics has gone to help pay for safety related projects. Unfortunately, $24K does not go very far in today's aviation economy and only one (maybe two) airport projects are able to be addressed each year. The recipients of these grants depend on the support by the state to maintain a safe standard of operations.

So why help just a few airport owners? The support actually goes a lot farther then just that.

As Chairman of the Aviation Association of New Hampshire, I represent the interests of nearly 4000 "airmen" across the state. This includes not just private pilots and private aircraft owners but mechanics and technicians, air traffic controllers, flight instructors and flight examiners, and medical flight examiners, to name just a few. We also represent the interest of many small aviation business owners. These people depend upon many of the small airports in NH. Not all flights begin and end at Manchester, Nashua, or Laconia. The airports in Jaffrey, Hillsboro, N. Haverhill, Newport, to name just a few, all have businesses associated with them as well as numerous privately owned aircraft based there. Unfortunately, there are very few people in General Aviation who are making high profits, most are lucky to just survive.

Much has been written about the benefits of general Aviation and an "integrated airport system" within a state. Besides an avenue for tourism, small airports provide access to remote areas in times of emergency (ie: New Orleans post Katrina), most small airports provide jobs and help support local business, and a great number of "tomorrow's pilots" train at these small general aviation airports.

Without the support this grant money brings, many small airports could face closure. If a municipality has a road or bridge that is in disrepair, how often have you heard it said, "Well, we'll just close it down and sell the land to a developer"? Of course the money is raised through local taxes and state grants and the repairs are made. So why do we rush to close airports? It has been said that, "If you pave a mile of road, you can then drive one mile. If you pave a mile of runway, you can go anywhere".

I ask that you and your fellow Senators give serious consideration to restoring the Class 97, Grants – Joint State and Local line item as recommended by the State Legislature.

Thank You,
Bruce Hutchings, Chairman
Aviation Assoc. of New Hampshire
52 Arthur White Rd.
Lancaster, NH 03584
(603) 788-3306
e-mail: bruhutch@hughes.net

[Download this as a Word document to print and mail to your senator]

Click [HERE] to find the contact information for your state legislator.