If your King Air is a senior citizen built before the late 1970s, I am betting that you are quite familiar with the use of the “Man Cool” and “Man Heat” modes of operation of your environmental mode selector. Why? Because the kinks associated with the Auto mode of environmental control had not yet been…
W hy do some King Airs have the Rudder Boost (RB) system installed and others do not? No, the answer is not that Rudder Boost was an extra-cost option, similar to a particular piece of avionics. Instead, some models were certified with RB as standard equipment and others were not. From the first King Air…
What’s your King Air to you? Is it only an inanimate object that provides transportation convenience for the owner(s)? Or is it something more, something that provides that mystical “pride of ownership” that makes you smile whenever you see it? For a lot of us – especially the owner-pilots among us – the King Air…
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…
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…
Just yesterday (I am writing this in mid-February 2020), I had the great pleasure of flying a “Flightseeing” tour of northern Arizona in Ron McAlister’s lovely 1984 B200 King Air. I have done this numerous times over the years in a multitude of airplanes, giving out-of-state visitors an aerial tour of our beautiful state, and…
There is more than one meaning or situation that can be addressed by the term “Windmilling in Reverse” and I hope to cover all of them in this article. First, why would the feathered propeller of a PT6 engine that has been shut down in flight rotate backward – turn counterclockwise (CCW) as viewed from…
A reader recently asked me some questions about the procedure for restoring the air conditioner (AC) back into working order in a B200, following a shutdown caused by too low or too high system pressure. I came to believe that this would be a worthwhile topic for discussion, so here we go. Before I discuss…
Are you using ECTM? You should be. Engine Condition Trend Monitoring (ECTM) is a Pratt and Whitney-endorsed program by which PT6 Hot Section Inspection (HSI) intervals may be accomplished on an “as needed” basis instead of on an hourly basis. The first step in ECTM is recording all engine parameters when steady in cruise flight.…
Reader Ron Randall recently sent me an email requesting that I review the E90’s fuel system. Ron has experience operating a King Air 100, a 200 and two E90s. He wrote that he experienced problems with the E90’s fuel system and requested my review/input. I am happy to oblige. Step back in time with me…