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MAYVILLE - Starflight is on track to one day pay for itself.

In a 23 to 2 vote last week, the Chautauqua County Legislature set salaries for two new positions - an aviation operations director and an aviation maintenance director. The creation of the positions could allow for Starflight to one day become self-funded, eliminating the more than $300,000 annual cost of the program from the county budget.

The resolution was opposed only by legislators James Caflisch, R-French Creek, and Doug Richmond, R-Westfield.

According to Chautauqua County Sheriff Joe Gerace, the Federal Aviation Administration requires the positions before granting a commercial designation. Such a designation will give Starflight the ability to charge for its services.

"It's a pilot who will carry two titles, pilot and director of flight operations," Gerace said of the two positions. "Before we can receive certification, we have to name a director of flight operations and a director of maintenance as well. It's additional responsibilities, not additional people."

At present, the county employs three command pilots as well as an additional substitute pilot and a mechanic who also serves as a Starflight co-pilot. One pilot and one co-pilot fly the helicopter during each mission.

In order to fly commercial class, Starflight will eventually have to hire one additional pilot. According to Gerace, pilots presently work 24-hour shifts. However, to receive a commercial designation, pilots cannot be on duty for more than 14 hours - which cannot be done with only three pilots.

"The business plan is for us to be self-sufficient," said Gerace, who helps oversee the Starflight program - which is a joint venture between the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office and WCA Hospital. The county provides the pilots and WCA Services Corp. provides the medical professionals who stabilize patients until the helicopter arrives at its destination.

As approved, the new aviation operations director and a new aviation maintenance director will be paid up to $77,771 each year to manage and maintain the Starflight program, which provides medical evacuation services in Chautauqua County and outlying communities, a coverage area of more than 15,000 square miles.

Not questioning the necessity of the positions themselves but their salaries, Richmond attempted to amend the resolution to set the positions at a lower pay grade.

According to Legislature Chairman Keith Ahlstrom, D-Dunkirk, the salaries had been set through human resources and the legislature does not have the ability to undo a contractual item. When Richmond would not withdraw his amendment, Ahlstrom ruled it out of order.

Calling for more transparency, Caflisch said that even as a legislator he does not fully understand Starflight's relationship between the Sheriff's office and WCA Hospital.

"It appears to me that WCA Services is the major beneficiary of this whole agreement," Caflisch alleged. "They are the ones who are reaping the benefits the helicopters produce. ... I just can't support it at this time."

"When we talk about reaping the benefits as Legislator Caflisch has just spoken, he's turned this into a 'who is going to make a profit' and 'where is the loss and gain' (question)," said Wally Huckno, D-Ellicott. "The profit is made by those citizens that we save in our county. This move will help us continue to upgrade the Starflight program with better helicopters. The others were just shot. This has been budgeted for and this is a citizen program. We never know when our neighbors, relatives or friends are suddenly (going to be) in a car accident, critically ill, have a heart attack or stroke. We need that service immediately. It's not the time to bicker as to who is going to make a penny or not on this. This is a program that we're upgrading for our citizens of Chautauqua County and we should all approve this."

Legislator Shaun Heenan, D-Dunkirk, questioned how much a delay in the approval of the resolution might cost the county.

According to Gerace, a delay would cost the county as much as it would take to fund Starflight in that period of time. For instance, a delay of six months would cost the county half of its annual budget, or around $150,000.

Starflight has safely responded to thousands of emergencies in the region since starting on Aug. 20, 1986. The program was the idea of then Chautauqua County Sheriff John R. Bentley and Murry Marsh, past CEO of WCA Hospital. The pair began working to create Starflight in the late fall of 1985.