Twins in an Ever-Changing Business Aviation World, Turboprops

Home , Autothrottle, Cessna Denali, Diamond DA50

Textron is betting big 16 with the Cessna Denali that turboprops have a solid future. Twins Dornier Seastar After several years of uncer- tainty, the centerline push-pull, all-composite amphibian twin appears back on track after the Dornier family formed a new joint venture (Dornier Seawings) to manufacture the aircraft with China’s Wuxi Industrial Development Group and the Wuxi Communications Industry Group. It then struck a deal in February this year for component airframe parts for the first 10 aircraft to be manu- factured at Diamond Aircraft’s by Mark Huber plant in London, Ontario, and shipped to Dornier Seawings in 16 Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, In an ever-changing business aviation world, turboprops for final assembly. Produc- represent timeless value in a steady market segment. tion eventually will be shifted to China. The interior of the Seastar Perhaps it is appropriate that things do not move very fast in the turboprop segment. Consider this: can be tailored to many dif- the Dornier Seastar first flew in 1984, was certified in 1991 and apparently will at last enter production ferent operations: personal, later this year. Or that Cessna, after dipping its toes in the pressurized turboprop single market for the commercial, government or better part of a decade, finally decided to jump into the pool this year—with the Denali—and likely will corporate missions. It features a light and spacious have an aircraft to customers by 2020. Or India’s NAL Saras. After three decades of development, two cabin that can be equipped flying prototypes and reportedly nearly half a billion dollars, the Indian government finally decided to with various configurations, pull the financial feeding tube and kill it. Perhaps at one time there was a market for something that with seating for seven to 12 looked like a Hawker 125 with pusher propellers, but that time was probably the 1950s. and will be available with a No, the turboprop market is plodding, deliberate; evolution in slow motion. More than 50 “quick change” configuration years after the King Air was introduced, companies are still finding ways not only to tweak the option. The cockpit has been aircraft but also to improve performance significantly, and in ways that make economic sense. In upgraded with Honeywell’s Primus Epic 2.0 all-glass avi- Texas, a company wants to put the Grumman Mallard, an aircraft that first flew in 1946, back into onics suite with four 10-inch production with Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34s. LCD displays with advanced vision, communication, nav- igation, surveillance and air traffic management systems.

INTOSH The aircraft is certified for single-pilot IFR. Customer deliv- www.ainonline.com

DAVID M c DAVID eries are now forecast to begin in 2018. The Seastar was designed in the 1980s and was FAA certified under Part 23 in the early 1990s at a cost of almost $150 million. A decade ago, the company said it held letters of intent (LOI) for more than 25 of the $6 million, 180-knot, unpressurized twins. Power for the 10,141-pound- mtow Seastar comes from a pair of 650-shp P&WC PT6A-135s. It has a service ceiling of 15,000 feet, a maximum range of 900 nm and a maximum demon-

On new-build Mallards, P&WC PT6s will replace the original P&W R-1340 Wasp radials.

Dornier Seastar

Turbine Mallard G-73T

10,000 feet is 220 knots and max- struggled to develop the Saras imum payload is 4,021 pounds. twin-turboprop pusher for busi- Service ceiling is 29,000 feet. The ness aviation. A third prototype volume of the combined cargo/ was spotted taxiing in 2014, but Evektor EV-55 Outback passenger area is 447 cu ft and precious little has been heard the maximum cargo payload is about the program since. When 3,021 pounds. Evektor claims quizzed about the status of the the Outback can take off from, program last year, Dr. Harsh and land on, runways of less Vardhan, the country’s minister than 1,700 feet at 6,500 feet msl. of science and technology, told Evektor has selected Esterline’s the Indian Defense Research CMC SmartDeck integrated Wing News Network, “I have digital avionics system as stan- no clue.” Now we do. dard equipment. As of the beginning of this year, the Saras program is offi- Mahindra Airvan 18 cially dead and buried. Formal Indian-owned Mahindra is funding for Saras was cut off working on an updated ver- in late 2013, but NAL man- Mahindra Airvan 18 sion of the Government Air- aged to keep it alive with “lab” craft Factories N24 Nomad funds after that. Now even that Evektor EV-55 Outback nine and 14 people. twin; initially rebadged as the funding has been exhausted and Certification for the Out- The project, underwritten GA18, it is now the Airvan 18. the program has been officially back is slated for next year; thus far by the Czech ministry Plans for the aircraft include disbanded. Two flight-test air- however, this schedule seems of industry and receiving tech- a modern glass cockpit and craft were built and flew, but doubtful as the first conform- nical assistance from the Czech an 18-passenger layout with one crashed in 2009 and the ing prototype did not fly until army, recently received fund- quick-change options for pas- program never really regained April 8 this year. This $2.1 mil- ing from the Malaysian com- senger, cargo and combi ops. traction after that. A third test www.ainonline.com lion light twin from the Czech pany Aspirasi Pertiwi, which The Airvan 18 will be powered aircraft was subsequently built Republic has been in develop- has agreed to invest up to $200 by a pair of upgraded 450-shp and reportedly corrected the ment for more than a decade, million. The aircraft is designed Rolls-Royce 250-series engines myriad problems with the origi- and a non-conforming proto- for high-altitude operations and new propellers, and it will nal design, but it never flew. type first flew in 2011. The air- at unpaved airstrips. Evektor retain its STOL capabilities, craft was originally slated for claims interest from several easily using runways shorter Turbine Mallard G-73T certification in 2013. However, air forces and is marketing the than 2,000 feet. Maximum Type certificate holder Frakes the order book to date appears aircraft to entities currently cruise speed is 173 knots and Aviation has formed Mallard slim and the flight-test pro- flying Cessna 402/404 piston range is 1,080 nm with 2,190 Aircraft in Cleburne, Texas, gram appears to be adhering twins and Antonov An-2 sin- pounds of payload. Maximum with the goal of building new- to a leisurely schedule, perhaps gle-radial biplanes. useful load is 4,405 pounds with production aircraft with new a reflection that it is a largely The Outback features a an mtow of 9,400 pounds. Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 public-sector project. Evektor quick-change cabin that can engines and Rockwell Col- says it holds orders for two be reconfigured in 20 minutes. NAL Saras lins avionics. Fred Frakes con- dozen copies of the military/ Power comes from a pair of For the last three decades, verted eight piston-powered utility/cargo/combi/passenger P&WC PT6A-21s rated at 536 India’s National Aero- Grumman Mallards to PT6

aircraft, which seats between shp each. Maximum speed at space Laboratory (NAL) has power between 1970 and 1984 © 2016 AIN Publications. All Rights Reserved. For Reprints go to 16 and later purchased the Mal- more than 800 Twin Otters, and General Electric H75-100s and performance data shows a 10- lard’s TC. Mallard plans to an estimated 500 are still flying. has Garmin G1000 glass-panel to 12-percent improvement in offer several interior configura- The X2 package gives owners of avionics, a new digital pressur- specific fuel consumption [over tions, among them an executive timed-out aircraft an economi- ization system, new air condi- the standard PT6s], which is floorplan with six single seats cally viable alternative to buying tioning with twin evaporators just incredible.” and a three-place divan, eight a new aircraft. (The DHC-6 has that delivers 300 percent more The cockpit of the G90XT single seats in a utility configu- a life limit of 66,000 hours or cooling capacity, new seats and will be substantially different ration, and a 17-seat high-den- 132,000 cycles.) Ikhana’s reman- new interior. The single-lever from a typical G1000 retrofit sity layout. Predicted numbers ufacturing process requires six power control has been devel- in a King Air. The instrument for the new Mallard: maximum to nine months of downtime. oped to make the aircraft easier panel is trimmed in carbon takeoff weight (land or water) The completed aircraft is essen- and safer for the pilot to control, fiber. It has a three-screen lay- 14,000 pounds, up to 4,462 tially “zero-timed” and good for as well as improving efficiency. out with a backup Mid-Con- pounds of fuel, a useful load of another 66,000 hours. In addi- Nextant executive vice pres- tinent Instruments standby 5,470 pounds, maximum pay- tion to incorporating the STCs, ident Jay Heublein told AIN attitude module and a Luma load of 2,350 pounds, typical the aircraft is torn down and that he expected GE to deliver Technologies LED glareshield cruise speed of 190 knots and etch-alodined on the inside, and the first engine equipped with warning panel. a service ceiling of 24,500 feet. it receives all-new wiring, circuit conforming hardware around The single-lever Unison breakers and avionics. the middle of last month, power control manages engine Remanufactured allowing final flight-testing to power and prop speed and has Nextant G90XT be performed. “This is novel in-flight torque- and tempera- Twins The company that remanufac- technology and it has taken ture-limit protection, autostart Ikhana X2 tures the Beechjet as the 400XTi longer than expected to get all and trend monitoring. It also Ikhana Aircraft Services is has turned its sights to remak- the paperwork completed,” he offers full exceedance protec- remanufacturing the DHC-6 ing C90-series Beech King Airs. acknowledged. tion. The fuel-system controls Twin Otter as the X2. For The Nextant G90XT received TBO for the H75 will be are now mounted above the $4.5 million, customers receive FAA certification in Novem- 4,000 hours, with no require- power levers, replacing pressur- an aircraft refitted with GE ber last year, but the company ment for a midlife hot-section ization switches that are no lon- H-series engines and a new is delaying customer deliver- inspection. The H series uses ger needed because control of interior. In addition, the air- ies until it receives subsequent a fuel slinger instead of fuel the cabin altitude is integrated craft incorporates a variety of approval of the single-lever nozzles and employs an axial into the digital G1000 avionics. proprietary STCs, among them power control. According to stage compressor rather than Several different stan- an mtow increase to 12,500 Nextant, final approval, from the PT6’s reverse-flow design. dard cabin configurations are pounds and re-lifed wing box, both the FAA and the EASA, Because there are no fuel noz- available, among them spe- nacelles, flight controls and is anticipated during the fourth zles to get clogged, there are cial mission/air ambulance, fuselage. Ikhana is working quarter this year, at which point no hot spots in the combustion a high-density five-passenger on an STC to raise the mtow it will be looking to firm up chamber, ensuring even thermal layout and an executive three- to 14,000 pounds and hopes to orders from the list of prospec- distribution and thereby elim- seat configuration. Beech has have that in hand to apply to tive clients from whom it now inating the need for an HSI. built more than 1,500 C90s and the X2 by year-end. holds refundable deposits. “GE undersold how good this Nextant believes an abundance De Havilland Canada built The G90XT is powered by engine is,” said Heublein. “Our of them are suitable for the program. “We are at $2.3 million Ikhana X2 for a full conversion (engines/ avionics/inspection programs) when a customer brings us an airplane. Airframes start www.ainonline.com at $400,000, so that takes the price for a completed airplane to $2.75 million if we supply the airframe. We had a big oppor- tunity to bring new technology to this aircraft and it has a real forward-fit feel, not that of a retrofit,” Heublein concluded. New Singles

Caiga AG300 (formerly Primus 150) This new $1.5 million, five-seat, all-composite aircraft is loosely based on the Epic Escape and

power generation, cooled turbine blades enabling higher thrust and fuel efficiency, and integrated and electronic propulsion control to enable single-lever operation. GE will conduct a detail design review of the new engine next year and start flight-testing in 2018. It will have an initial TBO of 4,000 hours. On the Denali the engine will be mated to a new McCauley (a Textron company) 105-inch- diameter, five-blade, con- stant-speed propeller, which is full feathering with revers- ible pitch and ice protection. The Denali’s cockpit will be equipped with the Garmin Cessna Denali G3000 touchscreen avionics suite and will have high-reso- according to China Aviation range of 1,410 nm and a ceil- flight is anticipated in 2018 lution multifunction displays Industry General Aircraft ing of 28,000 feet. Power comes and the company is accepting and split-screen capability. The (Caiga), and now appears to be from the 850-shp GE H85. letters of intent for the $4.8 G3000 flight deck will come falling significantly behind its million, single-pilot-capable, with weather radar, advanced original development schedule. Cessna Denali six- to nine-passenger aircraft. terrain awareness warning Certification had been expected Textron Aviation has offi- The Denali will have a range system (Taws) and automatic this year, but that now seems cially named its long-awaited of 1,600 nm, a maximum cruise dependent surveillance-broad- highly unlikely. Caiga claims new single-engine pressur- speed of 285 knots and a full-fuel cast (ADS-B). the AG300 will have a maxi- ized turboprop. The Cessna payload of 1,100 pounds. The The Denali will be offered mum cruise speed of 352 knots Denali was announced at aircraft has a flat-floor cabin, with a five-year limited war- (identical to the Escape), a EAA AirVenture in July. First a 53-inch by 59-inch rear cargo ranty covering airframe, engine door, a digital pressurization and avionics and will qualify for system that maintains a 6,130- enrollment in Textron Avia- foot cabin to 31,000 feet, and tion’s ProAdvantage programs. an optional externally service- able belted lavatory with pocket Diamond DA50-JP7 door enclosure in the aft of the Originally conceived as the cabin. The cabin also has passen- diesel-powered, seven-seat ger windows larger than those SuperStar in 2006, this updated in other Cessna models, interior version first flew in January this Caiga AG300 LED lighting, a refreshment cab- year with a 465-shp Motor Sich inet and a baggage compartment AI450S dual-Fadec turboprop accessible in flight. The cabin is made in Ukraine. Diamond www.ainonline.com designed to be easily and quickly claims that the AI450S burns converted between passenger and 20 percent less fuel than com- cargo configurations. parable engines and is fuel-effi- The aircraft will be pow- cient even at medium altitudes. ered by a new GE Aviation Diamond plans to develop Fadec-equipped 1,240 shp two variants of the aircraft: the turboprop with single-lever Tundra, with oversized tires Diamond DA50-JP7 power and propeller control. and STOL capabilities that GE announced it is develop- will allow it to use unpaved ing the engine late last year. runways as short as 650 feet; The engine draws on the mod- and another version for pri- ular architecture of the T700/ vate owners and for use as a CT7 turboshaft for better per- trainer that would feature nor- formance and lower operating mal landing gear and cruise at costs and has an all-titanium, up to 230 knots. The DA50- 3D compressor design for JP7 is designed to fly in harsh Epic LT The E1000 will be a certified version of the kit-built LT, shown.

per month following certification next year, gradually ramp- ing up to one aircraft per week “once we reach full production, and we’re going to get there as quickly as possible.” The E1000 has carbon- fiber construction, three-screen Garmin G1000 avionics and a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A- 67A (1,200 shp, derated from 1,825 shp) mated to a Hartzell four-blade propeller. Fuel capacity is 288 gallons. Time to climb to FL340 is 15 minutes and the maximum rate is 4,000 fpm. The cabin seats six and measures 15 feet long, 4.6 feet wide and 4.9 feet high. Mtow is 7,500 pounds. Sea-level takeoff distance is 1,600 feet; landing distance is 1,840 feet over a 50-foot obstacle.

Mahindra Airvan 10 One Aviation Kestrel K-350 MATT THURBER MATT Developed from the boxy metal piston-powered Airvan engineering fix even when it 8, this unpressurized turbo- meant a further program delay. prop single is powered by a “We took the time and Rolls-Royce 250-B17 turning got through that, and I am a Hartzell three-blade propel- happy to report that our wing ler. It features a 50-inch-wide passed structural testing,” he sliding aft cargo door. It has said. King said the main dif- a full-fuel payload of 1,400 ferences between the E1000 pounds (useful load 2,250 and the Epic LT kitplane are pounds, standard fuel capac- the addition of an emergency ity 153 U.S. gallons), a max- exit, different pressurization, imum range of 550 nm with air conditioning, and lighting IFR reserves and a cruise speed systems and several switches, of 145 ktas. Maximum climb and a few structural changes rate is 1,000 fpm and the ser- on the certified version. vice ceiling is 20,000 feet. The King Air A90 Innova upgrade to King Air A90 “But the really big differ- takeoff roll is 1,100 feet (1,600 ence is that we are certifying feet over a 50-foot obstacle), and Russia, and its engine can E1000 turboprop single has this airplane [the E1000] to giving this aircraft true STOL endure an outside air temper- slipped six months, to the Flight Level 340,” he said. The capability. The flat floor of the www.ainonline.com ature range of -50 degrees C first quarter of next year, to LT has a ceiling of FL280. “To Airvan 10 main cabin can be to 50 degrees C, according to accommodate the redesign go 6,000 feet higher is a really configured for diverse missions, Diamond. The aircraft will be of “about four parts” in the big deal.” He said Epic expects from patrol/reconnaissance/ produced at Diamond’s Wie- wing, CEO Doug King told the E1000 to have a full-fuel surveillance, medevac and sky- ner Neustadt factory in Austria. AIN this summer. King said payload of 1,100 pounds and diving to freight and commuter Diamond collaborated with the delay is “unfortunate,” but a range of “at least 1,600 nau- operations. Ukraine’s Ivchenko Progress “one of the things we weren’t tical miles and at [Flight Level] An optional cargo pod on the aircraft’s design and will going to do was compromise 340 a lot more, but I don’t know (600 pounds capacity) can be use the resources of Diamond’s the performance of the air- what that number is yet.” Epic attached to the aircraft, and Austro Engine subsidiary in the plane. Some of the engineers expects the E1000 to cruise at fittings for amphibious floats certification program. Approval said that if we just lower the better than 300 knots while are another likely option. At of the $1.1 million DA50-JP7 is max takeoff weight or drop the burning 40 gph at its service this point the program is sev- slated for 2018. speed we could lower some of ceiling, King said. eral years behind schedule. these loads.” But King said King said the company holds Epic E1000 he resisted all suggestions to orders for more than 60 E1000s One Aviation Kestrel K-350 Anticipated FAA certifica- compromise the aircraft’s per- and that plans call for an initial Work on One Aviation’s Kes-

Piper M600 The G3000 has two GTC 570 touchscreen controllers below the center MFD, forward of the power console. The avionics add 60/40 split-window capability on the PFDs, which allows display of synthetic vision in one 60-percent pane and a chart or other information in the 40-percent pane. The G3000 package also adds the enhanced map HSI feature, which allows overlay of information on the HSI such as map, SafeTaxi, flight plan, Metars, Nexrad and weather radar. Other avionics features include emergency descent mode, electronic stability protection, level mode button and underspeed/overspeed protection. An Aspen Evolution backup display is mounted to the left of the pilot’s PFD. Piper CEO Simon Caldecott said the company plans to cap production at 35 aircraft per year. appears all but suspended an additional 32 cu ft of cargo version of the M500 (formerly as the company has shifted space in the rear cabin. known as the Meridian) with Privateer Industries resources to the “Project Can- The cockpit features sidestick a new wing with room for 90 Privateer ada” refresh of the Eclipse controls, a low, contoured instru- gallons more fuel (to 260 gal- Construction of this single- very light twinjet. Through ment panel with large flat-panel lons), Garmin G3000 touch- engine, carbon-fiber amphib- last year, major suppliers for displays and a wraparound screen-controlled avionics, an ian has resumed after being the K-350 had been selected, windshield allowing views of uprated Pratt & Whitney Can- halted in July last year and among them Garmin for its both wingtips. Kestrel has not ada PT6-42A flat rated to 600 relocated to Titusville, Fla. G3000 touchscreen avion- released a price for the aircraft shp from 500 shp, a higher The prototype is entering ics system and Honeywell for but it is expected to be in the mtow (6,000 pounds, up from final assembly and could fly the TPE331-14GR engine, flat neighborhood of $3 million. 5,092), more full-fuel payload later this year. The assem- rated to 1,000 shp and provid- Preliminary specifications: (645 pounds, up from 550), bly team is currently await- ing a 5,000-hour TBO. maximum cruise speed of at more range (1,484 nm at inter- ing a custom MT propeller The aircraft has a four- to least 320 ktas; 1,300-nm range mediate power, up from 1,000 from Germany. Power for the five-seat executive interior (pilot, five passengers, max- nm), and a higher maximum seven-seat aircraft comes from on par with those of modern imum cruise speed at 31,000 cruise speed of 274 ktas, up a 714-shp Walter 601 spinning corporate jets, complete with feet and NBAA IFR reserves from 260. a ducted pusher propeller. Pre- high-gloss wood veneers, fine with 100-nm alternate); 1,200 While the cabin dimen- dicted performance numbers: www.ainonline.com leather, a wide aisle and over- pounds of payload with full fuel sions of the M600 and M500 215-knot cruise speed, service size oval cabin windows remi- (319 U.S. gallons usable); and are identical, the M600 cabin ceiling of 25,000 feet, range of niscent of a Gulfstream’s. It is 8,500 pounds mtow. For now, has more usable space; seat 1,000 nm fully loaded, water just one of nine interiors Kes- One Aviation chairman Alan foam has been resculpted to takeoff run of 1,300 feet over trel is developing, with pas- Klapmeier will say only that deliver more headroom and a 50-foot obstacle, and useful senger seating for five to nine the timeline for the project has memory foam provides greater load of 2,000 pounds. people. The others will accom- shifted, again, “to the right.” comfort. Several of the seats, Plans call for the airplane modate missions as diverse as including the copilot’s, now to be marketed as a kit first medevac, cargo and a high- Piper M600 have breakover backs that and then as a certified aircraft. density configuration for eight The Piper M600 received FAA convert into work surfaces Starting price is estimated in passengers. The cabin mea- certification in June. Flight and have cupholder detents. the $1.5 million range. Priva- sures 50 inches wide, 45 inches into known icing certifica- The cabin sidewall panels teer claims to have received tall and 16 feet one inch long tion remains pending, but is have been redesigned with order interest from prospective and can be configured for nine expected later this year. Cus- improved stowage and better customers in Canada, Brazil, passengers in the cabin (plus tomer deliveries began in July. ergonomic interface, and there Great Britain, France, Indo- one in the copilot position) or The $2.853 million M600 is a are now USB charging ports nesia, China, Chile and the

Cessna Caravan Upgrades/ Modifications Twins Textron Beech King Air • Pro Line Fusion Avion- ics Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion touchscreen avionics are now standard on all new King Airs. The suite has three 14-inch screens, high-resolution synthetic vision, full multi-sensor flight management system, pre- sets that will reconfigure all three displays with one touch and automatic wireless database and chart uploads. The system was designed with an open and scalable archi- cockpit displays. tecture for future upgrades. Addi- • Raisbeck/Hartzell Swept Blade tionally, the cabin of new King Aluminum Propellers The new Air 350is now has Wi-Fi and propellers are available for the electrochromic passenger win- King Air 250 along with Rais- dow dimming as standard. beck’s Epic performance pack- • Innova Aerospace GE H80 age. The new props provide engine and BendixKing avion- more thrust, shorten landing ics STC for 90-series King Airs distances, increase cruise speed Innova Aerospace is offering by up to 10 knots, are associ- a pair of new modifications of ated with quicker time-to-climb interest to 90-series King Air times and reduce noise. owners. Replacing the stock Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6- Upgrades/ 135As with a pair of GE Avia- Modifications tion H80s is expected to yield 10 percent more range, an 8-percent Singles improvement in specific fuel con- Cessna Caravan sumption, an additional 90 shp, a Earlier this year, Texas-based 4,000-hour TBO, no HSI and no Blackhawk Modifications recurrent fuel nozzle inspections. received EASA approval for its The H80 conversion is available 867-shp Pratt & Whitney Can- now on the C90 and E90, and ada PT6A-140 upgrade for the Innova plans to add H80 STCs Cessna Caravan and Grand Car- for other 90-series models in next avan (Blackhawk XP140 Perfor- year’s first quarter. mance Upgrade). The XP140 Installing the BendixKing Upgrade retains many original www.ainonline.com AeroVue digital avionics sys- items, among them the cowl, tem chops 105 pounds from the engine mounts and exhaust, weight of the legacy avionics while providing a factory-new while bringing the aircraft into engine and propeller, a new compliance with the latest avi- 325-amp starter/generator, all- onics mandates. The AeroVue new “smart” engine gauges, a Daher TBM 900 integrated flight deck features new oil cooler and new engine all-new radios and autopilot, hoses. Blackhawk has performed 1,050-shp Pratt & Whitney Can- In hot conditions, the com- three 12-inch displays, cur- more than 20 conversions to ada PT6A-60As with 1,200-shp pany has seen climb rate more sor control device, FMS with date. The XP140 conversion (flat-rated to 1,050 shp) PT6A- than double from sea level to coupled Vnav and ADS-B provides gains in takeoff, climb 67As. The engines and five-blade the FL350 service ceiling, reduc- out-compliant transponder. and cruise performance over the composite propellers from MT ing time-to-climb to 18 min- SmartView synthetic vision stock PT6A-114A. were recently installed on the utes. Cruise speeds have also will be optional. Baseline price Blackhawk is also working company’s King Air 350 test- gone up by as much as 37 knots, for the King Air 90 AeroVue on FAA STC approval for a bed and initial performance has to a maximum of 340 knots at upgrade is $348,000, including Beechcraft King Air 350 engine been “promising,” according engine power limits. The STC

Pilatus PC-12 supplement with full perfor- been under development for 18 new five-blade, scimitar-shape, with dual flight management sys- mance specifications for flight- months, and there are plans to graphite Hartzell propeller that tems (FMS), autothrottles, syn- planning purposes. make it available for retrofit for reduces interior and exterior thetic vision and enhanced vision The company expects the older aircraft. noise as well as drag. (Flir). An ADAHRS upgrade initial certification to cover Chabbert said the addition Pilatus also has aerodynam- and a full-time oil-quantity sen- all Rockwell Collins Pro Line of the toilet, combined with ically cleaned up the airframe, sor are optional. II-equipped 350s with ana- relaxed EASA charter rules giving the cabin door a flush han- The FG avionics suite inte- log engine instruments, and governing single-engine tur- dle, redesigning the flap actuators grates charts, maps, airspace it is working with Garmin on boprops, should make TBMs and fine-tuning the locations of depiction with low and high G1000 compatibility on the more popular in Europe. “A external antennas. Time to climb vector routes, satellite weather, initial STC. A separate STC toilet is required for commer- to 28,000 feet has been reduced engine instruments, IGuard is intended for King Air 350s cial charter operations. We’re by 10 percent in the process, engine monitoring, electronic equipped with the Pro Line 21 going to provide the best and and takeoff distance has been checklists and dual satellite base avionics suite. Blackhawk said most comfortable interior in reduced by 50 feet. The aircraft augmentation system (SBAS) the Hartzell 105-inch-diameter this class of aircraft,” Chabbert also received a minor makeover: GPS receivers in support of the five-blade composite propeller said. “We are going to be think- Pilatus and BMW Designworks flight management system with will be available as an option, ing more about the passengers. USA have fashioned six new LPV approach capability. while Raisbeck Engineering is You can be in this cabin for up interior styles and exterior paint The IS&S-developed PT6 working to upgrade its newly to five hours.” schemes and the entry door autothrottle allows a pilot to certified Hartzell swept, four- Chabbert said Daher will received LED lighting. control the power setting of the blade aluminum propeller continue to produce both the Owners of legacy PC-12s aircraft’s engines by setting a de- assembly to be compatible with TBM 900 and 930 to “provide can obtain the new propel- sired flight characteristic rather the PT6A-67A installation. customers with a choice” of ler and its performance ben- than manually controlling fu- avionics interface preferences. efits under STC. In June the el flow. The system provides a Daher TBM 900 and 930 “We try not to impose our pref- FAA approved installation by maximum continuous thrust, Beginning next year, TBM erences on our customers. We Finnoff Aviation in conjunc- speed hold and speed protec- owners will have the option of deliver what people want.” For tion with that firm’s engine tion mode. The autothrottle www.ainonline.com a factory-installed toilet. This the first half of 2016, Daher’s upgrade program (P&WC system also has a torque/tem- summer Daher senior vice presi- deliveries were split 45 percent PT6A-67P) to replace the stan- perature mode, and AOA mode dent Nicolas Chabbert said that for TBM 900s equipped with dard four-blade Hartzell alumi- and protection modes will au- the company would renew its the Garmin G1000 system num propeller. List price for the tomatically activate, regardless focus on improving the comfort and 55 percent with the newer propeller is $83,640. of autopilot engagement state, of the aircraft and add a side- G3000 touchscreen avionics. Late last year Innovative in an attempt to keep airspeed, facing, quick-change, marine- Solutions & Support (IS&S) torque and temperature from style, electric-flushing toilet Pilatus PC-12 NG introduced its Future Genera- exceeding pre-defined targets. as a $35,000 option on 2017 and PC-12 tion (FG) flight deck with PT6 The integrated FMS provides models. Installation of the toi- The 2016 Pilatus PC-12 autothrottle for retrofit in the coupled Waas/LPV approach- let requires removal of the two NG comes with a variety of PC-12. The FG flight deck con- es, full RNP compliance, and rear seats. It is designed with upgrades that improve passen- sists of primary flight and mul- required-time-of-arrival ful- a padded surround, personal ger comfort and boosts maxi- tifunction displays, integrated ly coupled flight profile perfor- item stowage, mirror, cabin mum speed by 5 knots, to 285, standby unit (ISU) as well as the mance based Vnav, autothrottle soundproofing, and a screened and maximum range to 1,840 integrated flight management controls, dual FMS with syn- privacy enclosure that can be nm (four passengers). The (IFMS) and electronic flight bag thetic DME. Pilatus delivered