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Need for state aircraft questioned as usage drops

Ohio owns 30 aircraft, divided between ODOT, DNR and Highway Patrol.

4 planes, 2 helicopters for sale by Ohio

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By Laura A. Bischoff, Staff Writer 10:51 PM Sunday, November 15, 2009

COLUMBUS — This year, one state agency shelled out as much as $650 an hour to charter helicopters while Ohio Department of Transportation staff pilots got so little time in the cockpit they had to make a point of taking state planes up for practice flights.

The Ohio Department of Transportation told the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation in May that it would be scaling back its aviation program and no longer have pilots and helicopters available for marijuana checks, which are usually done in late summer and early autumn.

So BCI, which had been one of ODOT Aviation’s best customers, hired county sheriff’s departments and a private charter firm for the 400 hours of flying time that ODOT pilots normally would have handled.

“It wasn’t something we wanted to do. It was something we were forced to do,” said Ted Hart, spokesman for the attorney general’s office, which includes BCI.

One of ODOT’s two helicopter pilots, Samuel L. Fetty Jr., took disability leave July 13 to Aug. 10 and then retired Oct. 20 “due to ineffective management,” according to personnel records.

ODOT didn’t want the other helicopter pilot, who also supervises the pilot staff, to be on assignment for 400 hours, ODOT spokesman Scott Varner said in explaining why the state’s helicopters weren’t made available to BCI.

In a budget-challenged state where most distances are drivable within a few hours, some question why Ohio is spending so much money on maintaining a large fleet of aircraft.

Between ODOT, the Department of Natural Resources and Ohio Highway Patrol, Ohio owns 30 aircraft — most of which are housed at OSU’s Don Scott Airport in suburban Columbus.

“We should at least do the rigorous analysis to answer ‘Is there a need for this?’ ” said Matt Mayer, president of the Buckeye Institute in Columbus, which advocates for limited government.

ODOT currently has 11 aircraft, but is looking to sell off six of the older ones as part of a budget cut.

The planned reduction comes as demand has dropped off dramatically.

Last year, state taxpayers shelled out nearly $600,000 in wages for seven pilots to fly ODOT aircraft just 1,316 hours.

That works out to $454.81 per hour in the air. Only 9 percent of their annual working hours was spent in the air in 2008.

In 2009, the flying hours dropped off even more: 319 between Jan. 1 and mid-October.

While not flying, pilots are supposed to spend their work time updating the aviation department’s Web site and airport directory, inspecting airport pavement and handling other tasks.

The demand for passenger flights on state-owned planes has dropped so sharply pilots have to make a point of getting in 30 minutes of flying time every two weeks — on the taxpayers’ equipment and time — to keep their skills sharp and FAA licenses current.

During these training flights, pilots typically fly from one suburban Columbus airport to another and back again. Such flights account for 6 percent to 10 percent of the pilots’ time in the cockpit, Varner said.

Why the drop off in flying hours?

Gov. Ted Strickland and Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher have made 40 trips in ODOT planes since taking office in January 2007, compared with 212 trips by former Gov. Bob Taft and his Lt. Gov Bruce Johnson in 2005 and 2006. And Democrat Marc Dann, who was criticized for using state aircraft to commute to work, left office in May 2008.

Also, up until a few years ago, ODOT allowed a few top managers to commute to work in the planes — a practice discontinued in 2007.

The drop off in passenger flights led to some cost-cutting.

ODOT didn’t replace three aircraft mechanics who were fired or resigned and three pilots who retired this year.

The department does plan to fill one of the pilot positions, however.

Since 2005, ODOT’s aviation program cost $19.34 million, which is funded with gas taxes.

That figure includes maintenance for the fleets owned by DNR and the highway patrol.

Natural Resources surveys forests, waterways and bird nests with its one pilot, two airplanes and one helicopter while the patrol, which has 15 full-time employees in its aviation section, uses 14 Cessna airplanes and two helicopters to catch speeders, find marijuana plants and chase suspects.

DNR’s aviation budget, which comes from hunting and fishing license fees, averages about $172,400 a year.

The patrol spends $1.4 million a year on its aviation program, but the 15 pilots patrol the roads when they aren’t flying, OHP Lt. Tony Bradshaw said.

Contact this reporter at (614)224-1624 or lbischoff@ DaytonDailyNews.com

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