When Ervin Deck flies into Wiscasset Municipal Airport, it’s a different experience for him than when the retired Naval air traffic controller lands at other airports along Maine’s coast.

That’s not just because he’s the airport’s manager. Landing there is more of a challenge.

Deck and other pilots have to fly over trees that he says are too tall to be as close as they are to the runway.

The Federal Aviation Administration will not issue grants for any further projects at the airport unless they are directly tied to the removal of trees from the airspace, Deck said. So, as long as the situation continues, the runway, which has cracking, will not get funded for reconstruction, he said.

The trees pose a safety issue, especially for planes approaching from the west, Deck said. Pilots have to avoid the trees while doing all the other necessary steps for a safe landing, he said. He is used to hearing fellow pilots’ concerns, and he shares those concerns, he said.

On June 30, he flew a rented Piper Saratoga and a Wiscasset Newspaper reporter over airports in Belfast and Owl’s Head, along with the Wiscasset airport, to help illustrate the problem.

The other two airports, Knox County Regional Airport in Owl’s Head and the Belfast Municipal Airport, don’t have trees as near their runways as Wiscasset’s does.

“Look at how clear the runway’s ends are,” Deck said near the Owl’s Head facility. Asked how important that was to pilots, he said: “I’d rather not hit a tree.”

The trees in the Wiscasset runway’s airspace, and their possible removal, are a point of controversy in town. Neighboring Chewonki Campground has called for other options to be explored. Taking out the trees would ruin many of the camp sites and jeopardize the survival of a longtime local business that generates about $2 million a year in spending, according to its owners and a lawyer for the campground.

The subject was discussed at length at a June selectmen’s meeting, involving the airport’s next, 20-year master plan and a separate document, an environmental assessment of possible work to clear the runway’s airspace. Selectmen plan to take up both items again on July 22.