Helicopter Association International (HAI) president Matt Zuccaro fired back at the White House following its late February call for an end to the alternate depreciation tax plan for corporate aircraft. The tax plan allows buyers of general aviation aircraft to depreciate their purchases over five years rather than the seven-year depreciation mandated for commercial aviation.
“I find it unbelievable that such continued initiatives, seemingly aimed at eliminating general aviation, are being promoted by a President who is one of the most frequent users of corporate aircraft via his travel on the peoples’ aircraft that we pay for,” said Zuccaro. “I support his use of these aircraft to perform his duties and responsibilities. But is it too much to ask that private individuals and corporations also be allowed to realize the benefits of general aviation for their business activities? Especially since we pay our own way by the millions of dollars we already give to the government via existing aviation-related taxes, while [creating] 1.2 million jobs and contributing $150 billion to the U.S. economy annually, as we serve the needs of society. This is especially true with regard to helicopter operations such as law enforcement, firefighting, emergency medical transport, power line construction and repair, etc.”
