The Detroit News reports...Federal subsidies that keep passenger air service flying to nine of Michigan’s most isolated airports are again facing the ax. President Donald Trump’s budget plan seeks to eliminate funding for what’s known as the Essential Air Service, which last year subsidized commercial flights to 173 rural airports at a cost of about $283 million. Michigan has more communities in the program than any other state except Alaska. 9 airports in our state receive the subsidy, including the Muskegon County Airport to the tune of $2.4 million. The Trump administration says the program wastes taxpayer dollars on mostly empty flights to places that are within driving distance of larger airports. Other critics of the Essential Air Service say fears about cutting off rural communities from the rest of the world are overblown.