Page 15 - Volume12 Number 5

Ask the Expert
King Air “GOTCHAS” by Tom Clements
This article originally appeared in the September 2013 issue of this magazine. Some questions that I have recently received lead me to believe it is time for a repeat. Additionally, I have added a comment about the Shock Link in the nose wheel steering mechanism.
Iam often asked by pilots transitioning into a King Air for the first time, “What should I look for? What systems or operations or mistakes commonly cause difficulties? If you were to make a list of things that could hurt me and/or the airplane, what would they be?”
To address those types of questions, this article will try to present a few important things that can get you if you’re not careful ... some King Air “Gotchas.” They are to be studiously avoided!
1First, Oil Dipstick Security. It takes little time for most PT6 engines to blow enough oil out of a loose or missing dipstick such that oil pressure drops out of
the normal operating range, getting low enough, quickly enough, that engine damage is almost assured ... unless the problem is recognized and an immediate return for landing or an in-flight shutdown is accomplished.
Most PT6s manufactured after about 2000 contain a ball checkvalve in the oil filler tube designed to prevent oil venting when the dipstick is missing – a nice improvement! You can recognize that your engine has this improvement by observing a shorter dipstick that only goes to “4 Quarts Low” instead of the longer “5 Quarts Low” older style dipstick.
Surprisingly, most King Air models do not contain a low oil pressure warning annunciator. Yes, the 300-series and F90-series do, but it is rare to find that useful light in other models. I believe both the British and French certification authorities required it to be added before the King Air could be approved in their countries, so some airplanes that originally went overseas, but have
MAY 2018
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 13