On Wednesday, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office announced that it would be selling a helicopter, and giving away another one.
The Department plans to sell the 1997 MD 600 helicopter, which was purchased with GIITEM grant funds provided by former Governor Jan Brewer. The sale of the helicopter will return nearly $900,000 to our GIITEM fund, providing suficient revenue to fund the aviation unit operations without impacting the Sheriff’s Office budget.
The Aviation Unit acquired a UH-1V Huey helicopter and a Bell OH58 helicopter for free through the military surplus program. Through the program, the departrtment can also obtain parts to keep the helicopters operational at no cost to the budget.
During the past 8 years, the office has obtained over $32 million in grants and supplemental funding. The Office receives an additional $600,000 each year through GIITEM which helps to fund efforts to combat drug and human smuggling.