Page 14 - Volume 13 Number 5

Steverson wanted a twin-engine aircraft that would be able to fly nonstop to Great Guana Cay near Marsh Harbour, Bahamas, one of his favorite destinations.
Commander at his home, along with a Rans S-7, a tail dragger made for landing on rough terrain such as local river and sand bars. “When the girls were young, they could both sit in the back seat we would fly over to a nearby river, land on a sand bar and catch catfish. That was really cool and some of the best times spent when our girls were young,” he said.
The C90 is hangared at Prentiss Jefferson Davis Airport (M43) and sometimes when he’s taking the family on a trip he’ll fly the King Air over to the airstrip at his house the day before, load up and depart from there the next morning. “That’s a dream come true,” he said.
He also uses the King Air for business meetings, to shuttle key personnel to safety meetings during plant shutdowns and to move employees between job sites when deadlines are critical. Circle S Inc. today employs between 70- 80 people full time and ramps up to more than 100-125 during high workloads such as shutdowns and turnarounds at plants, the ideal time for maintenance on equipment.
Lonnie imagines having both the Commander and King Air for a while.
“I’ll always want to keep the Commander because it was my father’s and hopefully one of my daughters will fly it and keep it in the family when I’m not able to fly anymore,” he said. “When it’s just me flying, it makes more sense for me to jump in the Commander and go. And it’s a lot of fun to fly. We did the super conversion, which put a 320 horsepower engine in it, and it really changed the climb and cruise speed. It went from a 140- knot airplane to a 170-knot airplane.
“While the King Air has a respectable speed, it truly is a King of the Air, but more than that it is King in Comfort and Safety. I think I will be flying this one for a long time also.” KA
12 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
MAY 2019