Page 8 - Volume 15 Number 6

the Milwaukee area by acquiring the employees and operations of Gran-Aire, which had operated at Timmerman Airport (KMWC) since 1946. They offer the same services at Timmerman plus fuel sales.
In January 2020, Spring City Aviation moved into a new hangar at KUES and continues to operate its corporate headquarters from Waukesha. In 25 years they’ve grown from two to 50 employees and from 6,400 square feet in one hangar to about 236,000 square feet of hangar space at three airports. Behrens said all segments contribute to the business equally.
King Air fits the bill
Spring City Aviation’s Milwaukee Timmerman location has been maintaining, repairing and upgrading King Airs for more than 20 years. Mechanics are factory- trained and take care of outside and based customers from Model 90s
through 350s, operating under FAR Part 135 and Part 91.
The company also is managing one King Air, in addition to operating four King Air models for charter.
“Our charter certificate over the years has had everything from Beechcraft Dukes to Cessna 414s, Cessna 421s and Piper Navajos,” Behrens said. “We made the decision to do away with all the piston equipment and to focus on turbine, specifically the King Airs, after we acquired Gran-Aire’s King Air B200 and their charter customers.”
Besides moving to turbine reliability, Behrens chose to rebuild the charter operation around the King Air line because he knew his customers would appreciate the ramp appeal, airstair door and roomy cabins. From an operational standpoint, he could rely on good product support and parts availability, as well as the benefit of familiarity among Spring City Aviation’s mechanics and pilots.
“The simplest way to put it, is that the King Air fits the bill for the types of trips we’re flying,” he said. “The King Air is a good platform for our mostly Midwest-based missions. From flights in the Great Lakes region out to the Great Plains for hunting or up to Canada for fishing trips. There’s plenty of room and they carry a good load, plus they are good for when we need to go into gravel strips.”
Spring City Aviation flew its charter fleet of King Air aircraft about 2,000 hours in 2020, up from 1,250 in 2019.
That fleet includes two 1979 King Air 200 models with PT6A-41 engines, N477JM and N335TA, and a 1978 King Air C90 with PT6A-21 engines, N549BR.
N335TA is equipped with a Garmin 430W and Sperry autopilot system. They’ve recently added frakes exhaust for both performance and looks, as well as new swept- blade propellers.
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6 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
MAY 2021