Page 16 - Volume 14 Number 7

wipe it dry. It works well on the plastic side windows too when they need cleaning.
About that nasty exhaust soot: The one big disadvantage of a conventionally mounted PT6 powerplant is that the exhaust comes out near the front of the engine and hence the cowling and nacelle get coated with the exhaust residue. A student once opined to me that “The PT6 is the only engine that must continually fly through its own a-hole!” He kinda nailed the problem, eh? Some exhaust stacks work better than others in keeping the cowling soot to a minimum, but no stack prevents the problem entirely.
The longer the exhaust remains the harder it is to remove, so this is another task that merits regular attention ... a last-flight-of-the-day cleaning whenever practicable. Many products are available and you probably already have a favorite. Mine is a spray bottle filled with about a 1:10 ratio of Simple Green and water. Spray it on, wipe it off with a towel ... the nacelle is clean again until the next flight!
Gentleness: How are you at closing the cabin door? Whenever I am sitting in the cockpit while someone else closes the door, I can immediately tell how adept he or she is at this task. How? By sound. If I can hear the door being operated it’s not being done in an optimal manner. Here’s the best way: Use a hand-over-hand pulling action on the aft door cable – the standard, only cable on many
models – until you can grab the door handle with your right hand. Rotate the handle fully counterclockwise (CCW) – the opening position – to withdraw the door hooks and bayonets into the door itself. Now place the door in the frame – don’t slam it! – and rotate the handle fully clockwise as far as it will go. See how easy that is? No slamming. No noise. No bayonets hitting the fuselage as they get pushed in far enough to allow the door to close. Before you head for the cockpit, of course you will make the six or seven checks to verify the door is properly closed.
You should have learned these checks in your initial training program. In case you need a reminder: One, the door handle won’t rotate in the opening CCW direction. Two, three, four and five ... the green stripes on the bayonets are visible, centered in the viewing windows. (I keep a flashlight in a seat back pocket near the door to help in viewing this.) Six, lift the center step to view the inspection window – it has its own light operated by a little push button beside the viewing window – and verify that the red arm is properly engaged by the plunger. Seven – for the 300-series only – push the button for the hook inspection lights up above the door and verify that they look normal.
It seems that closing the door from the outside is also a weak area of “gentleness” for many pilots. First, bend your knees and lift up the door itself to start the process.
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14 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
JULY 2020