As both an airline pilot and an active general aviation pilot, maintaining my various legal currency requirements to act as pilot in command (PIC) has historically been relatively easy. My airline simulator training and checkride events suffice to meet my Biennial Flight Review (BFR), Instrument Proficiency Check (IPC), and my 90-day multi-engine landing requirements (as…
Air traffic controllers are a mystery to some. Through time and experience, most pilots become comfortable talking to air traffic control (ATC) and operating fully within the national airspace system. They adeptly navigate through normal and special use airspace, arrival and departure procedures and instrument approaches into airports. As pilots, we take pride in being…
In the last few months, I’ve had several inquiries from King Air owners regarding high-cost maintenance invoices. Most of these guys are new to King Air ownership and their pilots (if they have one) are newbies too. Some sent me their shop invoices for review and I regret to say that I found examples of…
Petition FCC to Reconsider 5G Network Approval A number of aviation industry groups filed a petition May 22, 2020, requesting the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reconsider its April 20, 2020, approval of Ligado Networks’ (formerly LightSquared) nationwide 5G cellular service. It includes the company’s failure to sufficiently demonstrate its ability to act as a “good…
Yes, that is a long title. If you fly a King Air with the electrohydraulic landing gear system, this article is not for you. But if you are flying a C90-1 or earlier member of the 90-series, an E90, most F90s, any member of the 100-series (straight 100, A100 or B100) or a 200 built…
Service Letter MTL-34-01: Navigation – GPS-4000S Global Positioning System Software Update Issued: May 14, 2020 Effectivity: Beechcraft King Air 90 Series, serial numbers LJ-2151 through LJ-2173; Super King Air B200GT, serial numbers BY-324 through BY-379; Super King Air B300, serial numbers FL-1140 through FL-1222; and Super King Air B300/B300C, serial numbers FM-76 through FM-85 Reason: To correct…
Every pilot remembers their first solo flight. It’s a huge milestone where, after hours of training with a flight instructor, you are finally deemed ready to take the aircraft up on your own with no one else on board. Those first few moments, as your wheels leave the ground, are both exhilarating and terrifying as…
Unprecedented times are upon us. In the past, King Air magazine has published dozens of articles on a variety of insurance topics. The content has revolved around experiences your fellow King Air operators have endured and we all have been able to learn from. Currently, the world is grappling to navigate COVID-19, which has sent…
The fuel system on the new C90GTx models that are being delivered in the year 2020 is nearly identical to the fuel system that first appeared on the King Air A90 when it made its appearance in 1966 … a “mere” 54 years ago. The A90’s predecessor – the Straight 90, the first King Air…
The two-place Model 120/140 were modern, all-metal designs that established Wichita’s Cessna Aircraft Company as a leader in the highly competitive personal, training and business aviation markets. After five years of massive bloodshed, incalculable destruction and indescribable human suffering, World War II had ended in victory for the allied nations. During that terrible time the…