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Sheriff requests and board approves purchase of overhauled engine for Cessna patrol plane
Summary
Kings County Sheriff Dave Putnam asked the board to authorize a sole‑source purchase of an overhauled engine for the department's Cessna 206 patrol aircraft to avoid anticipated downtime; the purchase (not to exceed $145,000) will be funded from the sheriff's operations budget and the board approved the request.
Kings County Sheriff Dave Putnam told the board on Feb. 17 that the sheriff’s office operates a Cessna 206 fixed‑wing aircraft used in patrol operations and that the airplane’s current engine has an industry time‑between‑overhaul (TBO) of 2,000 hours. Putnam said the airplane has about 1,400 flight hours and, at current utilization, could reach TBO in eight to 10 months.
Putnam requested authorization to purchase an overhauled engine from Lycon Aircraft Engines under a sole‑source procurement because other vendors’ build times exceeded two years. He said the purchase will be funded from the sheriff’s operations budget (Budget Unit 2220000) and that the county would budget installation costs in the sheriff’s fiscal 2026–27 budget. The purchase amount was described as not to exceed $145,000; Putnam described options to keep the airplane operating, including returning a core and renting an engine if necessary.
Supervisor comments thanked pilots and staff for their work. The board approved the sole‑source purchase and the related budget change by roll call. No public comment was recorded on this item.
If the board had not authorized the purchase, Putnam said the engine timeline and vendor lead times could produce operational downtime for the aircraft used in patrol and public‑safety work; the authorization gives the sheriff lead time to begin the overhaul.
