Nebraska legislators debate buying airplane from University of Nebraska Foundation

Posted: Monday, February 25, 2013 12:30 am

By Cristina Woodworth 

Nebraska legislators are considering purchasing an 11-passenger twin turboprop aircraft currently owned by the University of Nebraska Foundation.

The state is already in a $10,000-a-month lease-purchase agreement with the foundation, which ends on June 30, meaning the state must decide whether to buy the plane or let it go by that time.

The Legislature is looking into purchasing the plane for more than $2.16 million, according to Andre Aman, legal counsel for the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics.

“The Legislature will make the decision whether or not to purchase the aircraft,” Aman said. “That question is currently before the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee.”

Aman said the aircraft is available for use in all branches of state government. It’s used to transport the governor and other state officials when needed.

The NU Foundation originally purchased the King Air B200 in 2001 to reach the foundation’s donors, according to foundation spokesperson Dorothy Endacott. The initial price of the plane has not been made public.

“Our fundraisers work in the foundation’s offices in Omaha, Lincoln and Kearney, but our alumni and donors live all over the country,” Endacott said. “By far, the most common mode of transportation used by our fundraisers to visit donors is commercial aircraft and automobile. Use of private aircraft comes in a very distant third place.”

Endacott said discussions to sell the aircraft began after the foundation came under the leadership of interim CEO John Gottschalk in February 2012. Brian Hastings was named CEO later that year.

“The primary factor was the internal discussion on whether selling (the plane) would have any impact on our fundraising ability and the conclusion was that it would not,” Endacott said. “The trigger that began that discussion was having a new CEO named on Feb. 1. When he came, he initiated a review of various operational items and the aircraft use was one of those items.”

The NU Foundation’s decision in June 2012 to sell the plane also came shortly after the Associated Press published a May 2012 article about the more than $80,000 used for private flights in 2011 when the foundation could have used less-expensive modes of transportation like driving or commercial flights.

The AP article said the private plane traveled 16,108 miles in 2011, which included trips to Chicago, Dallas and Des Moines.

Endacott said the AP article and the foundation’s decision to sell the plane were unrelated.

“The AP story was not a factor,” she said.

Ronnie Mitchell, state Department of Aeronautics director, could not be reached for comment but met with the Appropriations Committee earlier this month to discuss the plane, the Lincoln Journal Star reported.

Mitchell said that the state would look to sell its own eight-seat Piper Cheyenne plane if allowed to purchase the foundation plane, according to the Journal Star. That plane could sell for $500,000 to $600,000.

Although there are high costs associated with purchasing and maintaining an aircraft, Mitchell told the committee that travel time for state officials is also a factor, according to the Journal Star. Having a private aircraft to use is often more convenient and practical than driving from Lincoln to the state’s panhandle, he said.

“(The plane is) a time machine in some respects,” Mitchell told the committee.

Source:   http://www.dailynebraskan.com