Page 13 - Volume 15 Number 4

40 aircraft fly 50,000-plus training hours annually.
Initial training begins in the Cessna 172S or Piper Archer aircraft and goes to Piper Seminole aircraft for multi-engine coursework. Ultimately, students have the opportunity to train in King Airs between the two UND aviation campuses. Flight training occurs in North Dakota out of Grand Forks International (KGFK) and in Arizona out of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway (KPHX).
The department added the first of its three King Air C90GTi aircraft in October 2008. Over the course of the models’ tenure with the program, they have collectively flown nearly 40,000 hours with roughly 75% of the hours originating in North Dakota.
Currently N23ND (2009, serial number LJ-1944) is the lone twin turboprop in North Dakota while N26ND (2009, serial number
LJ-1956) and N330PE (2008, serial number LJ-1917) are typically operated out of the Grand Canyon State. All were upgraded to Pro Line Fusion® avionics between June 2018 and 2020, a project that was undertaken as a partnership between Rockwell Collins and the school. The majority of the avionics equipment was donated by Rockwell Collins and the UND Aerospace Foundation paid to have the conversions completed. According to Chuck Pineo, executive director of the Foundation, the partnership has allowed the group “to showcase and provide feedback on the avionics,” while at the same time allowing students to learn a popular avionics system.
Additional work on the aircraft has also been completed from updates on two of the aircraft’s interiors to engine overhauls. The Foundation, which owns the aircraft, plans to paint two of the aircraft in the coming year. While much of this
APRIL 2021
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 11