Ontario sells $28.9M jet for same price after backlash, Ford says

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Wednesday that the province has sold a recently purchased used private jet for the same $28.9 million price that it paid last week.

At an unrelated event, the premier said that Bombardier had bought the plane.

The premier’s office announced the purchase of the used 2016 Bombardier Challenger 650 jet Friday, and faced severe public backlash.

Within 48 hours of the announcement, Ford backtracked and decided to resell the jet.

His office said Ford needed the plane because of the sheer size of Ontario, which necessitated a more secure avenue of travel to locations that do not have connections to commercial flights.

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Ford said it was very tough to travel to northern Ontario while flying in single-propeller planes, and he has spoken about his intense fear of flying in the past.

Opposition parties dubbed the aircraft the “gravy plane.”

He said that the plane was meant to be shared between offices and that it was never intended to be a “Ford plane.”

The premier also said he needed something more secure in order to travel to the United States for ongoing trade negotiations.

With files from The Canadian Press.

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