Creflo Dollar's church board says he'll get his $65 million private jet

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Remember when Creflo Dollar started that ill-advised crowdfunding campaign to get a $65 million private jet?

Well, it looks like he’s going to get that jet after all.

The board of World Changers Church International, which Creflo Dollar founded, has released a statement saying that the jet is “necessary,” reports The Christian Post.

“A long-range, high-speed, intercontinental jet aircraft is a tool that is necessary in order to fulfill the mission of the ministry. In light of an unfortunate accident that recently resulted in the ministry’s aircraft being declared a total loss, it is our intention to purchase another airplane at a time, place and price of our choosing,” read the statement from WCCI.

While the board announced that it still intended to purchase the expensive jet because it was “the best,” they made it clear that this decision was not made by Creflo Dollar alone. They have also hired an airplane repo attorney that will assist them should there be any legal issues regarding the purchase of the plane.

The statement, in part, reads:

All significant projects, policy changes and financial expenditures, regardless of the circumstances, are presented to the board and approved prior to implementation. A proper system of checks and balances is in place to insure the ministry’s dealings are beyond reproach. When Dollar steps forward to announce a ministry initiative, please make no mistake that it is actually an action of this board.

Our community is centered on biblical principles directly from the Word of God. There is no area of the organization that does not base its foundational principles and operational guidelines on what the Bible has to say to us about God’s love and His grace. We understand that others may interpret biblical truths differently — the freedom to worship as one chooses is a fundamental hallmark of a free society — but wish to assert our God-given right to practice what we believe. This is our faith, the very basis for what we believe, and it is not necessary that we justify it.

The organization confirms its sights are still set on the nearly $70 million Gulfstream G650, saying, “We plan to acquire a Gulfstream G650 because it is the best, and it is a reflection of the level of excellence at which this organization chooses to operate. We, the World Changers family, so value the lives, the safety and the well-being of our pastors and leaders that we wish to provide to them the best air travel experience possible.”

Even with the board behind him, it could be a while before the televangelist gets his jet, however. Gulfstream’s sales director for New Jersey, Delaware and New York, Kevin Valik, called the jet acquisition a “tough deal.” Even if WCCI raises the nearly $70 million for the jet, Gulfstream has a long backlog of jet orders to fill through 2018.