I spend a lot of time researching logbooks on behalf of buyers considering King Airs for purchase. They need to know where the aircraft is maintenance-wise. Some of these King Airs are “younger” but many have 10,000 hours or more. The longevity of the Beechcraft King Air makes me proud, but 10,000 hours makes for a lot of maintenance records and researching them can be challenging at times.
Recently I’ve encountered some really frustrating situations that could have been avoided if the log entries were clear, concise and complete. All log entries are not created equal as you will soon see.
Over the course of my career I’ve slogged through a lot of logbooks. Early on I formed some strong opinions on what makes a good log entry. Is this a topic of interest to the average King Air owner? Maybe not, but bear with me.
Critical to Aircraft Value
Accurate logbooks are crucial to the value of any aircraft. When an aircraft changes hands, the logbooks come under intense scrutiny. If maintenance records are in disarray, maintenance items that have been complied with may not be found. These items will have to be re-done at the seller’s expense.
Missing logbooks are a serious problem. They wreak havoc on the value of an aircraft because damage history in the time span covered by the missing book(s) cannot be ruled out. If a missing logbook doesn’t kill the sale, it will certainly reduce the price.
If you haven’t done so already, have your logbooks scanned to a computer file. It’s good (and cheap) insurance. These days, digitized logbooks are practically a requirement for sellers.
What about your log books? When it’s your time to sell, how will they hold up?
Too Vague
Here’s a real example from a very poor log entry:
“Complied with all lube items currently due.”
This blew my mind! King Airs have lube item requirements due every 12 months plus a host of others due at 200-, 400-, 600-, 800- and 1200-hour intervals. Each is a special inspection unto itself. Some contain service items (replace a gasket, service a filter) in addition to specific lubrication tasks. There is no overlap or duplication. They’re all different and must be listed independently in the log entry.
Too Much Information
Here’s another real example:
“Pilot reported aircraft’s RH engine would not ignite. Troubleshooting carried out, igniter box Unison p/n 10-381550-1 s/n xxx found with very weak spark. New exciter Unison p/n 10-381550-4 s/n xxx (A.P.I. SO-xxx-xxx) installed. Aircraft ground run and operation of ignition system checked OK.”
The discrepancy and its disposition have no place in a logbook; this information belongs on the work order. The vendor’s Sales Order number is also unnecessary. If a warranty issue cropped up down the road, the shop would research the work order kept on file and take it from there.
All that’s needed is “Installed igniter box in new condition, R/H position, p/n 10-381550-4 s/n xxx; removed p/n 10-381550-1, s/n xxx” and nothing more. Keep clutter out of the logs.
I put detailed squawk and disposition write-ups in my client invoices. I want the customer to see what it took to sort out and resolve their squawk. It’s important to the customer but it has no place in the log entry.
Hobbs Is Not Enough
I see way too many airframe log entries with nothing but the Hobbs reading at the top. This doesn’t cut it. Hobbs meters fail and when replaced, they start over at 0.0 hours. The only acceptable proof of compliance with any hour-based requirement is by linking it to Aircraft Total Time (ACTT).
Recently, on another job, I struggled to find compliance for the lube items, the instrument air filter replacement (800-hours) and the power lever pin inspection (1,200 hours). I was faced with a long string of Hobbs-only entries in the airframe records. Was this the original Hobbs meter? I had no way of knowing.
I rummaged through the records, looking for an entry that had Hobbs and ACTT. Finally, after going back quite a few years, I found an entry with both numbers. Eureka! I moved forward from there and calculated the ACTT for each entry based on elapsed Hobbs. In the end, I found proof of compliance for all those hour-based items.
That seller lucked out. In a pre-buy situation, if the compliance for those items could not be found, the items would have to be done and the seller would have to pay for it. (In case you’re wondering, it was not the original Hobbs!)
Engine Logs Need Airframe Time
All too often I find engine log entries with engine times and cycles, but no ACTT. This is my biggest complaint in log entries. Even the FARs, which give precious few specifics for log entry content, require that every log entry contains the Aircraft Total Time (Ref. FAR 43.11).
If you’ve only owned airplanes with original engines – which means the Engine Total Time and ACTT are the same number – consider yourself lucky. Engines come off one airplane and go onto another all the time. I just did a maintenance assessment on a King Air with 17,000 hours. The accumulated logbooks could fill a full-size pickup! I was surprised that it was only on its third set of engines.
Great care and detail is taken with the log entries at installation and removal. All the airframe information (registration, serial number, in addition to ACTT) is found on engine entries at installation.
The problem comes after installation. Somebody completes an engine log entry and only includes Engine TSO (Time Since Overhaul) and then everyone afterward does the same. I’ve seen this go on for 15 years in the logbooks. Then I come along, trying to calculate the time left on the starter generator, for example, and I’m stymied.
Engine Book or Airframe Book?
Starter generators are considered an airframe item even though they are attached to the engine. Their 1,000-hour overhaul belongs in the airframe book, but many mechanics and shops don’t understand this. They assume if it’s attached to the engine, then it belongs in the engine book. This is an area of great confusion.
In truth, only the items that came with the engine in the crate are included in engine log entries. All other engine accessories are airframe items. But I don’t think this confusion will clear up any time soon, so I’ve learned to bop back and forth between the engine and airframe books to get the information I need.
In my example of finding the time remaining on a starter generator, there was no trace of it in the airframe book, but I found an entry for the starter generator in the engine book with Engine TSO only. This was no help as the engine wasn’t original to the airframe. I had to go back in time to the log entry when that engine was installed on that airframe to calculate the hours on the starter generator. If the engine logs referenced the ACTT, I would have had a much easier time.
I heard a horror story about a Hot Section Inspection performed 800 hours earlier than necessary because of a simple mistake in the logbooks. The engines were mismatched. This was the “younger” of the two, but somewhere along the line a figure got transposed. Again, the engine logs only showed TSO with no reference to Airframe Total Time – an expensive omission. A cross reference to ACTT could have brought the problem to light before the engine was removed and torn apart for no reason.
The ACTT belongs on every log entry, whether airframe, engine or propeller. That should be your main takeaway from this. Figure 1 (left) is an example of an engine log entry showing the full array of airframe data that should be included.
Format
In addition to keeping my log entries concise, I always composed them in a numbered list format. The most important maintenance items like Airworthiness Directives (AD)s,
major inspections and required items come first; bulbs, O-rings and less consequential issues come last. It makes it so much easier to find what you’re looking for when verifying compliance.
Paragraph-style entries drive me nuts and I’m clearly not alone. I see paragraph entries where someone before me used a highlighter to pick out the salient points, separating the wheat from the chaff.
Unfortunately, the FARs don’t dictate format, but I’ve had many conversations with FAA and NTSB personnel and they all prefer concise log entries formatted as a numbered list.
Bring Logbooks to Maintenance
When your King Air goes in for maintenance, bring the logbooks. Some of those Hobbs-only airframe entries are because the shop never sees the books and can’t compute the ACTT.
Each time a new shop sees your King Air they need to research what’s been done and what needs done. If you’ve been going to the same shop for a decade, you should still bring your books (unless the shop keeps a maintenance summary for each customer – many shops do this).
Maintenance Tracking Service Reports
I have mixed emotions on this topic. These reports come in handy for sellers to pass on to prospective buyers and maintenance consultants like me. But these reports are no substitution for actual logbooks. I’ve never reviewed a maintenance tracking report without errors.
Just a few months ago I evaluated a King Air 200 built in 1981. The seller, an air ambulance company, had computerized maintenance tracking for their whole fleet. The report for this 200 was used in the marketing materials. The engines were billed as a few hundred hours since overhaul, but the logbooks told a different story: The engines were over 400 hours past overhaul.
Additionally, the report described it as a B200 when it was not. There are many differences between a straight 200 and a B200 besides the -41 and -42 engines. Although this 200 had -42 engines installed in 2011, it didn’t make it a B200. It still lacked the other features incorporated into the B200.
I’ve learned I cannot rely solely on these reports. I use them to get the ball rolling when I’m assessing the maintenance status of an aircraft, but I cross-check everything against the actual logbooks as soon as I get my hands on them. There’s no substitute for the logbooks.
I think maintenance tracking services are fine where multiple aircraft are involved. Owner-operators may find they are overkill and pricy. There are other options for maintenance management should you require it.
Parting Shots
When picking up your King Air after maintenance, check all log entries for Aircraft Total Time. If it’s missing, make the shop put it in. It’s an FAR requirement so stand firm. It’s not negotiable.
If a shop hands you a log entry in paragraph form, printed in a microscopic 8-point font, can you get them to re-organize it as a numbered list? Probably not, but I’d give it a try.
Get a debrief after maintenance. Each time I returned a King Air to service after a Phase or major maintenance, I did a thorough debrief with the pilot or owner/operator. I went through the entire work order, squawk by squawk, discussing every item. I kept the log entries on the table for reference. A lot of effort went into creating their log entries. I made sure my customers reviewed them before they went into the book and out of sight.
When it finally comes time to sell your King Air, brokers and prospective buyers will be crawling all over your logbooks. Hopefully they will stand up to the scrutiny. In the meantime, however, enjoy the heck out of your King Air!