Robert Johnson saw a Facebook post in August 2017 from friend Doug Jackson asking fellow general aviation pilots in the Dallas area to help in an effort he was leading to fly critically-needed relief supplies to small airports in coastal Texas. While ground transportation was unsafe due to catastrophic flooding, aircraft could land with basic…
John Glidewell likes to imagine having been a fly on the wall in the early 1960s at Beech Aircraft Corporation during conversations between company president Olive Ann Beech, her engineering executives and engine supplier Pratt & Whitney as they were considering combining the proven airframe of the Model 80 series Queen Air with the gas…
Mark your calendars now for King Air Gathering 2023 being held at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Florida. The upcoming Gathering will be a bit different from others in the past, as all seminars and exhibits will be held at the World Golf Village. The resort not only features two championship golf courses…
As Air France’s Airbus A330-200 engines whined to a stop, sand patterns twirled on the aircraft’s windows and moments later, an all-encompassing “brown out” rampaged into N’Djamena, Chad, and closed the central African airport (FTTJ). Somewhere near the wind-blasted terminal, Beechcraft King Air 200 (N22071) waited patiently. Based in the country’s capital city, the airplane…
I fly some version of a Piper PA-46, a Daher TBM or a Beechcraft King Air five to six days a week. I’m either instructing, examining or sometimes I get to fly those beauties all by my lonesome. Not a bad gig, eh? I love my job and would not choose to do anything else. My…
Circling the globe in a Beechcraft King Air on an extended five-month mission is a profound and addictive pursuit. Talking with Inuit people living in the stunning remoteness of Canada’s massive but sparsely populated northern territory of Nunavut. The happy greeting with smiles visible through hazmat suits in Bangkok, Thailand, after getting the sense an…
Over the years there has been talk about needing a Beechcraft King Air Hall of Fame to honor those who developed the world’s bestselling business turboprop and those who continue to support the legion of passionate pilots and operators. King Air B200 owner John Glidewell made it a reality by persisting and convincing King Air…
To appreciate this story, I need to share some background information. In 2016 Ron McAlister, Tom Clements, Jack Braly and I were standing outside of one of the hangars at the Beech Heritage Museum (BHM). During conversation, Ron expressed he had always wanted to have a large King Air fly-in but we were unsure of…
He’s only had use of FL-586 for six months, but Ben Giles is certain he’s found paradise in the form of an airplane: a 2008 Beechcraft King Air 350 he purchased in 2020 and had extensively refurbished and upgraded at Textron Aviation’s Indianapolis Service Center. “This is the aircraft we will keep forever, or as…
It’s tough for Jeff Lowe to fly his 1979 Beechcraft King Air C90 past an airport that is home to an aftermarket completion center. As co-founder and president of Aviation Fabricators – or AvFab – he knows each facility is a customer or prospective customer for the interior parts and components his company designs and…