Wanna buy a used jet?

The Colorado aircraft broker contracted to sell the state's 2005 Cessna Citation Bravo is advertising the jet for $3.15 million — about $2.35 million less than what the state paid for it back in the days when Bill Richardson was governor.

Gov. Susana Martinez, who made an issue of the jet in her gubernatorial campaign last year, has called the plane — which has beige seats and carpet, cherry veneer woodwork, accent lighting, a refreshment center and fold-out workstations — the "ultimate symbol of waste and excess."

And the sooner the jet is sold, the better for the state, officials say. It costs the state about $400,000 a year in fuel and maintenance, a General Services Department spokesman said last week.

However, the state hasn't been spending much on fuel for the jet this year. The plane hasn't been flown since early December, department spokesman Tim Korte said. It's stored at the state hangar at the Santa Fe Municipal Airport, he said.

New Mexico's Cessna is the newest model and the most expensive of the six aircraft listed on Wetzel Aviation's website.

"There have been some inquiries, some interest," Wetzel spokesman Bryon Mobley said Monday. But he said the bad economy has presented "challenges" in selling the aircraft.

Mobley said the average time for selling a jet like New Mexico's is 90 to 180 days. The company was chosen for the contract about two months ago.

The asking price is slightly lower than other 2005 Citation Bravos listed on aircraft sale websites. One such jet in Texas — same model, same year — is being offered for $3.195 million.

However, that Cessna has not been used as much as the New Mexico jet. The Texas plane has been in the air 996 hours and has 821 landings. New Mexico's jet has recorded 1,313 hours of flight time and has made 2,280 landings.

Wetzel has some leeway in determining the price for the plane, Korte said. The contract does not set a minimum price. But General Services Secretary Ed Burckle would have to sign off on any sale.

Under the contract with Wetzel, if the jet sells for more than $3 million, the company would get 10 percent of the amount between $3 million and the final sales price — plus another $60,000, The Associated Press reported in May. If the jet is sold for less than $2.5 million, the commission would be 1 percent of the sale price.

President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats recently have talked about rolling back tax breaks on corporate jets. But as long as the sale is made before any such legislation is passed, it would not affect the New Mexico jet, Korte said.

From her first days in office, Martinez has had an ad on the home page of the governor's website advertising the jet for sale. However, the governor's website has not attracted any serious offers for the jet.

Last year, Martinez's gubernatorial campaign made "Sell the Jet" a political slogan. The phrase appeared on campaign billboards and bumper stickers.

But that wasn't the first time Republicans made an issue of the plane. In the summer of 2005, when Richardson was in New Hampshire testing the water for his presidential campaign, the state GOP ran ads on New Hampshire radio stations. The spots attacked what they called Richardson's "rich and famous lifestyle," and mentioned the jet, which at that time had yet to be purchased, as an extravagance for a "high-class showboat."

Another Republican ad later that year mentioned the jet and called Richardson "King Bill." However, Richardson was re-elected the next year with 69 percent of the vote.

The state also is trying to sell a 1976 Beechcraft King Air. Korte said the 35-year-old plane would be sold for parts. Wetzel is not brokering that sale, he said.

Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com. Read his political blog at roundhouseroundup.com.

ON THE WEB

• Wetzel Aviation's ad for New Mexico's jet: http://wetzelaviation.com/aircraft.php?id=76