A citizens group trying to prevent a Navy fighter jet practice field from coming to Camden County has invited the state's highest-ranking public officials to an upcoming meeting.

Concerned Citizens Against the OLF has extended an invitation to U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr, Gov. Mike Easley, Congressmen G.K. Butterfield and Walter Jones, state Sen. Marc Basnight and state Rep. Bill Owens to attend the meeting at Camden High School's cafeteria Wednesday, Feb. 6, at 7 p.m.

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The citizens group wants a chance to air their concerns about the U.S. Navy's study of a site in the Hales Lake area for an outlying landing field, or OLF, for jet pilots to use practicing touch-and-go maneuvers. The Navy plans to conduct a 30-month study of sites in Camden and Gates counties — as well as three sites in Virginia — to determine their suitability for the OLF.

Camden residents and officials say the practice airfield would ruin the county's bucolic ambiance and economy and add little economic development.

The citizens group would also like William G. Ross Jr., secretary of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, to attend. He oversees the state agency that worked with the Navy in developing a list of sites that includes Hales Lake.

"I'd like to find out what his part was in the selection of Camden," said Larry Johnson, who heads up the citizens' group and organized the Feb. 6 meeting. "What I like to know is who put Camden and Gates on the list."

Johnson said the invitations were sent out to officials a few days ago. He said if the officials themselves can't attend, he has asked that their top aides be present.

Johnson said residents from across the region are also invited, including those from neighboring Pasquotank, Currituck, and Gates counties.

"We just want people to come in here and see that the citizens in Pasquotank and Camden and Gates and Currituck counties are all opposed to this, and that we will fight it," Johnson said. "We're going to stand together to get them to move the OLF somewhere else, not to locate it in the two counties in North Carolina."

Johnson said the citizens group has paid for anti-OLF advertisements that it hopes will be broadcast by local radio stations as public service announcements. The group also plans to play the spots during the Feb. 6 meeting, he said.