Space is limited and over half the available spots have already been filled for the 2021 King Air Gathering (KAG) being held Sept. 23-26 at the Beechcraft Heritage Museum in Tullahoma, Tennessee. If you are thinking you might like to attend, you may not want to wait much longer to register.
Below is a summary of the agenda:
Thursday, Sept. 23:
Those flying their King Airs to the event will land at the Tullahoma, Tennessee, Regional Airport (THA) located adjacent to the museum and have reserved parking.
Starting at 1 p.m. and running every hour until 5:00, there will be guided museum tours (normally tours are only self-guided) from “special” tour guides – four people who have personal knowledge of Beechcraft history.
5:30-7:30 p.m. – Enjoy meeting other King Air owners and pilots at a Welcome Cocktail Reception sponsored by Blackhawk Aerospace. Heavy hors d’oeuvres will be provided compliments of the King Air Academy.
Friday, Sept. 24:
After welcoming comments, the first seminar will be one that you won’t want to miss.
9:30 a.m. – Bruce Landsberg, vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will discuss recent King Air accidents, more specifically the one at ADS since the final report has been released. He will also share best practices for the King Air community.
11 a.m. – Ed Phillips, Beechcraft historian and author, as well as being a pilot and mechanic, will share the early years of Beech Aircraft and how it survived through the tumultuous years.
11:30 a.m. – Don Cary, retiree from Beech Aircraft will discuss how the company prepared for the new era of pilots (one was hiring Tom Clements!) and aircraft when the King Air was introduced.
12 p.m. – Lunch will be provided by Pratt & Whitney and there will be extra time allotted to visit the ramp full of King Airs, as well as looking around the museum and gift shop.
1:45 p.m. – Breakout session: Choose between two sessions with experts from each field – one focusing on Garmin avionics, certified autopilots and how to connect and configure them and the other will be an interactive presentation for Collins Pro Line and Fusion avionics users.
3 p.m. – An aviation insurance specialist will discuss the current state of the aviation insurance industry, why premiums are so high and what you can do.
3:30 p.m. – Breakout session: EFBs for the King Air pilot will be broken out by Garmin Pilot or Foreflight and provide interactive, informational sessions for each.
4:30 p.m. – James Raisbeck, founder of Raisbeck Engineering, will share how his company and all of the King Air improvements came to be.
5 p.m. – The inaugural “King Air Hall of Fame” awards presentation.
6 p.m. – Dinner and entertainment hosted by Stevens Aerospace & Defense Systems. Enjoy Nashville-style barbecue cooked right on the property and local Nashville entertainment of dueling pianos!
Saturday, Sept. 25:
8:30 a.m. – Bill Crutchfield, president and CEO of Crutchfield and also a King Air pilot and owner, will provide advice on safety and insurance that any pilot can benefit from, but specifically the aging King Air pilot.
9 a.m. – Textron Aviation Senior Air Safety Investigator Peter Basile will present how the King Air compares to the industry and common themes he has observed.
10 a.m. – Tom Grunbeck from IS&S will discuss the ThrustSense Autothrottle, the latest safety device available to the King Air.
10:30 a.m. – Textron Aviation’s Manager of Turboprop Product Support Kim Burton will provide recent changes in King Air maintenance requirements and the top 10 questions (and the answers) her group receives regarding the King Air.
11:30 a.m. – Dean Benedict, King Air maintenance expert, will discuss logbook reviews, pre-buy inspections and acceptance flights.
12 p.m. – Lunch will be provided by Pratt & Whitney and there will be extra time allotted to visit the ramp full of King Airs, as well as looking around the museum and gift shop.
1 p.m. – Tom Clements, King Air expert, pilot and author will share his thoughts on some of the King Air systems and making every approach a stabilized approach.
2 p.m. – Breakout session: Attendees can choose between a technical level interactive discussion on PT6A engines or a discussion on one of the many misused or misunderstood modes of the 10 installed legacy
King Air autopilots.
3:15 p.m. – Special Speaker: Back by popular demand Robert “Hoot” Gibson, USN Retired, former fighter pilot, test pilot, and Navy astronaut who spoke at the King Air Gathering II in Dayton, Ohio, has been requested back to speak as numerous KAG attendees have been requesting it. Don’t miss his memorable way of sharing stories.
4:30 p.m. – Wrap Up
Don’t miss the opportunity to attend the King Air Gathering at the historical Beechcraft museum. Besides the wealth of knowledge that will be shared, being able to talk face to face with King Air product and service providers and other King Air owners and pilots, all attendees also receive a year’s membership to the museum.
To register and for more information, go to kingairgathering.com.