The now West Virginia governor Joe Manchin when elected in 2006 uses a B-50 Beachcraft for state business. He used his influence for the state to buy a Cessna 208-B for state business. In 2009 these two stated owned airplanes had the tail numbers blocked on these two airiplanes . Manchins reasoning was for his personal “security” !
But ! Governor Joe Manchin holds a single engine pilots rateings and owns and flys a Piper 32 Saratoga very often out of Yeager airport where its based and hangered. And Joe Manchins Piper Saratoga tail numbers are NOT blocked !
Is there not something wrong with this picture ? State owned airplane numbers blocked, but not the governors private plane ? And the governor Joe Manchin says it all for his personal security !
State aircraft are typically used for multiple purposes. Delaware uses their aircraft for govt. officials, police missions such as extraditions and investigations, and much more. There are legitimate security reasons to block tail numbers, both governmental and private.
Here in the People’s Republic of Washington they are not blocked. One was for a while and they caught hell for it from the same group that pressured them to sell their jet. What’d they do? Sold the jet, traded in the King Air 200 and bought two more B200’s (and this week they started taxing bottled water). This is a pretty big state with terrain rising from sea level to almost 15,000’ but they can fly corner to corner in under an hour (a leisurely 8-10 hour drive).
The question on “a” state governor having state owned aircraft ID numbers blocked is this. Many other states do not have their state owned aircraft ID numbers blocked .Some states do not even own airplanes and if my research is correct the states that do have their state owned ID numbers blocked are in a minority group.
So if its for personal and national or state security why is not all states have their ID numbers blocked ?
The states that do have their ID numbers blocked are using a federal program to do so.
There remains a question with most of these states having their ID numbers blocked. That question is, Most of these states started having their aircraft ID numbers blocked several years after NYC 911. For an example, West Virginia’s governor Joe Manchin had two West Virginia state owned aircraft blocked in 2008 . So from NYC 911 to 2008 what was the reason for the elasped time to have the West Virginia state owned aircrafts ID numbers blocked ?
West Virginia governor Joe Manchin says, the state Department of Public Safety made the decision in 2008 to block tracking access to the governor’s planes but that it is only in the name of safety. It’s not done to try and pull the wool over taxpayers eyes.
But, again, West Virginia governor Joe Manchin has a single engine rateing, owns a Piper Saratoga 32 and flys it on short hops around the state and sometimes Cleveland ,Ohio and this Piper Saratoga’s ID numbers is not blocked. One would think Manchin would have his private planes number blocked if he considers it personal security for the governor of a state .
Just a news story (4/18/2010) concerning West Virginia’s governor Joe Manchins flying habits. This story will probably be delete in 14 days ( newspapers policy).
There is no single answer to your question. You’d have to call each and every state to ask them why they chose to block or not block their tail numbers, and even then you probably couldn’t get a definitive answer.
I’m sure that many feel that to block the aircraft would only invite increased attention and questions as to “what are they trying to hide”. On the other hand, if you are using the aircraft to transport prisoners, it’s probably best not to advertise it’s every movement.
Certainly 9/11 made everyone reconsider their security arrangements, so this could explain the timing of some of the request for blocking.
