Last year started with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Beechcraft King Air’s first flight on Jan. 20, 2014, as well as recognizing the line of turboprops as the best-selling business aircraft family in the world with nearly 7,300 aircraft delivered and a worldwide fleet having surpassed 60 million flight hours. Shortly thereafter, in March, the acquisition of Beechcraft Corporation by Textron Inc. was finalized and Beechcraft, Hawker and Cessna brands would all be housed under the Textron Aviation banner.
Since it’s been a little over a year under its new corporate umbrella, has anything changed with the King Air, or its customer support, parts and maintenance services? King Air magazine asked these questions of the company’s leadership team, including Christi Tannahill, senior vice president, Turboprop Aircraft and Interior Design, and Brad Thress, senior vice president, Customer Service.
The Aircraft
According to Tannahill, the King Air is still being manufactured at the same manufacturing facility, Plant IV, located at what is now called Textron Aviation’s east campus.
After coming out of bankruptcy in 2013, Beechcraft had announced it was looking at the possibility of creating new King Air models. When asked if there are still plans for that, Tannahill answered, “With the acquisition of Beechcraft by Textron, you will see additional investments in the King Air product line. In fact, just last year at NBAA we announced two new improvements on the King Airs.”
The enhancements Tannahill mentioned are a new standard performance upgrade on the C90GTx and an enhanced payload option on the King Air 250. The new upgrade on the C90GTx allows for shorter takeoff and landing distances – most significantly, shortening the takeoff distance by nearly 600 feet – better handling characteristics and enhanced passenger experience. The upgrades are a result of incorporating Raisbeck Engineering’s performance enhancements consisting of swept-blade propellers and dual aft body strakes. With the King Air 250, customers can order this model with a factory-installed modification that increases the maximum takeoff weight from 12,500 pounds to 13,420 pounds, providing 1,025 pounds of payload with full fuel. The modification, developed with CenTex Aerospace, Inc. of Waco, Texas, also is an aftermarket option for in-service King Air 250 aircraft and available through Textron Aviation’s factory-owned service centers.
“These are both great examples of taking our customer feedback and requests, and turning them into improvements on the products,” Tannahill said. “Continue to watch for announcements, as we expect to make more on the King Air turboprops this year.”
The Service
The customer support organization at Textron Aviation is headed by Thress, who has an extensive background in aviation and many years in the customer service organization. Thress oversees the company’s customer service network, including partnerships with authorized service facilities. He is responsible for mobile service solutions, as well as parts and service programs for jet and propeller aircraft.
Looking at changes in services for the King Air, in the past year Textron Aviation announced it will offer ProAdvantage product support programs to the global Beechcraft King Air turboprop fleet. ProAdvantage is a legacy support solution, previously exclusively available for Cessna Citation business jet customers, comprised of a number of programs providing life-cycle maintenance and spare part support for aircraft airframes and avionics, engines and, when applicable, auxiliary power units.
ProAdvantage includes ProParts, ProTech and ProPropeller, with ProParts being the cornerstone element of the package and provides coverage for maintenance – line, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance – and parts such as wheels and tires, avionics, brakes, motors, actuators, gauges and light bulbs.
Textron Aviation has been expanding its company-owned service network to include the authorization for King Air maintenance and plans to continue to do so, opening up service options for King Air owners around the world. Recently the company announced that its company-owned service centers in Sacramento, Calif.; Mesa, Ariz.; and Paris, France, as well as two other European centers in Dusseldorf and
Zurich, have gained certification for the King Air 90-, 200- and 300-series aircraft service and repair. Thress also reported that the company continues to have field support personnel dedicated to King Air operators.
“The combination of Beechcraft, Cessna, and Hawker under the Textron Aviation umbrella continues to pay dividends to our customers,” Thress said. “Throughout 2015, we’ll continue our Beechcraft and Hawker service expansion across our global, company-owned service network.”
The Numbers
When looking at the 2014 General Aviation Manufacturers Association’s (GAMA) year-end shipping and billing report, the King Air faired very well for Textron Aviation by delivering 127 King Air models, in addition to 94 Cessna Caravans in the turboprop category. In the jet division, 159 of Cessna’s current jet models were delivered for the year, and of course zero Beechcraft/Hawker jets were delivered since production was halted when the company emerged from bankruptcy.
Although the company stated it could not disclose current production rates, it looks like the King Air is holding its own and then some under the Textron umbrella. The future continues to look positive for this best-selling business aircraft.
Tannahill summed up the new organization by saying, “Customers can expect the same quality of service and support they have received over the past 80 years at Beechcraft.”
Meet Brad Thress
As senior vice president, Customer Service since the formation of Textron Aviation in 2014, Brad Thress is responsible for all aftermarket service and support for the installed base of Beechcraft, Cessna and Hawker aircraft. Formerly a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, Thress began his career with Cessna in 1992 as a demonstration pilot. Through the years he was product marketing manager for the Citation X, was responsible for the production line start-up for the Citation Sovereign, held the position of vice president of Quality and vice president of Component Operations, overseeing all manufacturing operations that supply components for aircraft assembly. In 2009, he became senior vice president of Customer Service for Cessna before assuming the title of senior vice president of Business Jets in 2011.
Meet Christi Tannahill
Most long-time King Air owners know Christi Tannahill, who joined Beechcraft in 1999. She served as vice president of Hawker Beechcraft Global Parts and Services, then vice president of Beechcraft’s Global Customer Support organization before the formation of Textron Aviation. As senior vice president, Turboprop Aircraft and Interior Design, she is responsible for the profit and loss of the turboprop business
(King Air and Caravan lines) – from customer input and advanced design, to manufacturing, customer delivery and continued service and support. She also leads the customer-focused interior design organization that supports all product lines.
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