Page 18 - Volume 14 Number 7

Smooth taxiing not only is appreciated by your passengers in the back, but your King Air will benefit from it too. (Dan Moore VMG LLC)
airport with an elevation of 6,700 feet and an OAT above 20 degrees Celsius. As the first engine got dragged down below 50% Ng and with ITT approaching the redline, I emphatically demanded, “Turn off the generator!” We reverted to a second battery-only start and all was well. But the “kindness” factor – giving the second engine a generator-assisted start with the benefit of a much cooler ITT peak – was non-existent.
The potential for engine harm, in my opinion, is greatest during starting than at any other operating regime. Do it right, without fail, to be kind to your powerplants.
Taxiing: By the time I observe a pilot get to the runway, I have a fairly accurate assessment of the skills he or she is about to demonstrate in flight. In my opinion, accuracy always trumps smoothness in flying. Holding altitude and heading perfectly, tracking an ILS with tight
16 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
tolerance, doing steep turns to licensing tolerances ... things most King Air pilots are rather good at, in regards to accuracy. Smoothness? It is much rarer to find that a pilot can exhibit the proper degree of accuracy combined with smoothness. That combination demands a high level of proficiency and talent.
Likewise, when taxiing. Pretend the client/boss/spouse in back is continually about to take a sip from their coffee cup or martini glass. Is your taxiing smooth enough that nary a drop will be spilled? Do you start and stop rolling so smoothly that it’s hard to tell when movement starts or stops? Strive for that. Your brakes, struts, and propellers will all benefit.
In most cases, releasing the brakes at Low Idle will start the airplane rolling. A slight hill to climb or sitting on grass or dirt may prevent this “automatic” roll. In that case, rather than adding power, a kinder technique is
JULY 2020