T
he King Air Gathering (KAG) held April 12-14 at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Florida, was considered a success by its new coordinators, King Air Nation. Attendance and sponsorship numbers were up from last year with 132 King Air owners/operators joining the Gathering, along with 31 companions.
There were some updates to the program from previous Gatherings and overall, they were very well received. Those changes included: hosting the event at a resort destination to further the draw of attendees, separating presentations and the vendors’ hall so conversations could continue as needed without interrupting presenters and adding a program for companions. This year’s location allowed a space that hosts large meetings, making it easier to offer a variety of options and more room for more vendors to exhibit and show King Air owners/operators a variety of products and services.
The companion’s program received great reviews as those who attended thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Not only did they have access to attend any of the speaker sessions (including a Pinch Hitter/Ground School course by Tom Clements) and social activities, there were also special events planned especially for them: An introductory coffee/tea time, a “get acquainted” luncheon, the Textron Aviation-sponsored cooking demonstration and tasting experience by Food Network’s Chef Amanda Freitag and a tour of the historic city of St. Augustine.
Another addition was the dinner hosted by Textron Aviation, followed by a live auction which, not only added some excitement to end the evening but raised money for three charities/causes: Mission Aviation Fellowship, Compassion International and the victims of the March 2023 tornadoes in Rolling Fork, Mississippi. Thanks to the generosity of the sponsors who donated items and services to the auction, King Air Gathering attendees will have contributed $50,000+.
A survey was sent to all of the attendees of this year’s Gathering for feedback on their experience. King Air Nation plans to listen to all comments and try to meet as many preferences as possible. So far, comments in support of expert-level speakers and breakout sessions continue to be positive as they have in years past. Feedback also has supported the move toward resorts hosting the event and developing companion attendance. Sponsorship requests for 2024 are already coming in. Next year, the airport is closer to the meeting center and festivities with attendees’ and vendor’s exhibit aircraft will be included in the program, which is sure to be a crowd favorite.
Make sure to mark your calendar for next year’s King Air Gathering, being held at The Greenbrier in West Virginia, May 15-18, 2024.
Thank you to our 2023 KAG Sponsors/Partners
Diamond
Textron Aviation
Platinum
Blackhawk Aerospace
BLR Aerospace
Raisbeck Engineering
Stevens Aerospace
and Defense Systems
Gold
Aerospace Turbine
Rotables, Inc.
Aircraft Lighting International
AvFab (Aviation Fabricators)
CAMP Systems International
Central Flying Service
Collins Aerospace
Concorde Battery
Covington Aircraft
Elliott Aviation
Flight Mechanix
Garmin
GENESYS Aerosystems
Hartzell Propeller
Ice Shield PSA (SMR Technologies)
Innovative Solutions & Support
International Propeller Service
Jackson Jet Center
Kadex Aero Supply
King Air Academy
Lee Aerospace
Luma Technologies
Mint Turbines
NAASCO
Pratt & Whitney
Precision Aviation Group
Professional Aviation Associates
RAPCO Fleet Support
StandardAero
True Blue Power
Winner Aviation
Silver
1st Source Bank
Aerox Aviation Oxygen Systems
Alliant Insurance Services
Marsh Brothers Aviation
Ortega Aviation Services