Sky high Seminoles: FSU Boosters to buy aircraft for up to $9 million after board OK

The sky is no longer the limit for Florida State University when private planes are involved.

Plans are in the works at FSU for the Seminole Boosters to purchase up to two aircraft with a budget of $9 million for athletics and other university-related travel.

The initiative was approved during an FSU Board of Trustees meeting last week after the university’s Seminole Boosters, a direct support organization that funds the Florida State Athletics Department, sought permission from the board to buy the aircraft.

“We've had a pretty good study going on for a little while now, and there's a lot of other universities — including universities in the state of Florida — that own their own aircraft rather than charter,” BOT Chairman Peter Collins told trustees in support of the Boosters' proposal.

The possible $9 million investment comes at the same time FSU is reportedly working with JPMorgan as its investment banker to explore ways of raising the athletic department's equity and bringing in funds from institutional investors.

FSU has indicated its willingness to leave the Atlantic Coast Conference unless the league changes its revenue distribution model. However, FSU would have to pay the $120 million exit fee and likely go to court to challenge the league's Grant of Rights, which ties each team's media rights to the ACC through 2036.

Who would use the planes?

Universities in the state with private aircraft include the University of South Florida and the University of Florida, where UF's athletic association paid for an eight-passenger jet in 2011, according to a Tampa Bay Times article.

Some of the universities outside of the state that own planes are Pennsylvania State University, the University of Texas and the University of Wyoming.

Over the past several months, the university has been working with the Seminole Boosters team to identify potential aircraft and a structure for an aviation operation, according to Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Kyle Clark.

“Without a private aircraft, it has grown more and more difficult to accomplish the business needs of Florida State University, the Seminole Boosters and Florida State University Athletics,” Clark told trustees.

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With the future purchase, FSU administrators such as President Richard McCullough as well as the provost, deans, athletic director and coaches, including Coach Mike Norvell, would be able to use the aircraft for long-distance trips — related to business or recruiting purposes, for example — while being charged on an hourly basis to reimburse the Seminole Boosters.

But the planes won’t be big enough for FSU’s sports teams.

The first airplane being considered for purchase is a Cessna Citation CJ2 aircraft — which is a six-seater plane model — while the second plane has not been determined, according to Collins.

In addition, purchasing “brand new” aircraft appears to be out of the question.

“We're not buying brand new planes that depreciate by 30-40% when you put them in the air the first time,” Collins said. “We're being pretty frugal about it, and there has been a concerted effort and search for the planes.”

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'Going to save them money in the long run'

The Boosters have obtained proposals from financial institutions and are currently considering multiple options, which include loan options of up to $3 million.

“Since the pandemic, charter rates have gone sky high,” Collins said. “The Boosters want to do this, and they believe it's going to save them money in the long run.”

During the Wednesday meeting, the board also approved the creation of a direct support organization called FSU Transportation, Inc. to operate and govern the aircraft that will be bought.

“This would enable us to do the things that we can't otherwise do, frankly,” Trustee Jim Henderson said. “There are opportunities that are foregone because we can't get in front of someone to get something done.”

He added that one of the most important factors of the entire deal would be the interview process for hiring quality pilots in the long run.

As the Seminole Boosters continue to consider financial proposals for the aircraft purchases, they must ensure that their decisions are in compliance with the Board of Governors Debt Management Guidelines before proceeding with the plan.

A timeframe has not been announced yet for the establishment of the direct support organization's board, but the university hopes to complete a purchase in the coming months, according to an FSU spokesperson.

Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on twitter @tarahjean_.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU trustees approves Seminole Boosters' plan to buy two planes