Faulk. Scott {OST) 

From: 

Sent: 

To: 

Subject: 

Dear Sir or Madam, 

Laura Lee Kahee <celebrate_halloween@hotmail.com> 

Friday, November 29, 2013 3:43 PM 

EAS (OST) 

Makani Kai support 

My name is Laura Lee Kahee and I am writing this letter on behalf of my husband and I in support of the 

airlines Makani Kai which currently has a contract to provide air service to the Kalaupapa settlement on the 

island of Molokai located in the state of Hawaii. 

Makani Kai has been providing excellent service to the patients as well as to the employees which reside in the 

park. My husband is employed by the National Park Service. He resides there during the week because the 

settlement is isolated from the rest of the world outside. The only way down to the settlement is either by 

walking a strenuous 3 mile trail, travel by mule or by plane. During the winter time when the weather is 

especially rainy and the days are shorter, walking the trail is harsher than it normally is. It is very slippery and 

far more dangerous due to water falls, landslides and feral animals. A lot of employees have been afforded 

the privilege of flying with an airline that is both affordable and very dependable. Makani Kai has been 

providing excellent service and it is my hope that you consider them when making your decision on choosing a 

provider for services to Kalaupapa. Makani Kai's owner has family ties to the island and we feel that we have 

received a little extra aloha because of it! They have become a welcome member to our families that depend 

on them so our loved ones can afford to fly home. 

We have had other carriers and no one compares to the care and service Makani Kai has provided! We have 

had Pacific Wings which is currently proposing to provide service under its new name "SeaPort". While under 

the name Pacific Wings, they first started providing services to Kalaupapa at an affordable price. By the end of 

their second year, their price had jumped from approximately $50.00 to a whopping $250.00 (one way) for a 

10 minute flight from Kalaupapa to "top side" Hoolehua. They would "punish" people if they disagreed with 

how service was being provided by not flying in for a day or two. 

Makani Kai has constantly provided affordable flights and have shown the ability to provide service to shuttle 

in the maximum allowance of visitors into the park. When Mother Marianne became a Saint, special flights 

were needed to accommodate travelers from world wide into the settlement and Makani Kai was able to 

provide such necessary services. 

As a person whom depends on a carrier to be affordable, reliable and professional it is my plea that Makani 

Kai be our carrier to the settlement. My husband and I pay for a mortgage on our primary residence, a rental 

payment for the quarters that he lives in while employed at the National Park (Kalaupapa) as well as the other 

day to day financial burdens. It is still affordable for him to fly home to his family with Makani Kai. It is our 

wish to make known that we want Makani Kai to continue its services to the people of Kalaupapa. 

Thank you for your consideration, 

Joseph and Laura Lee Kahee IV 

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