Jeff goes Jet...

[helo_av8or]

Hello all, just had to share my excitement. I got to fly a King Air C90 this morning. I'll share the experience and some pictures as soon as I get back from class...

Jeff
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"No Kitty, Bad Kitty!"

[helo_av8or]

So, how many of you burned jet fuel today?

As an aviation student, I had the opportunity (or good fortune) to fly a C90 KingAir today. A local Marine recruiter was in the area, and showed up at our flight team meeting last night. He mentioned that he was giving "stick time" to anyone who would come out. I had to think about this for a short time... Go to class... Fly a kingair... go to class... fly a kingair... Well, what would any sane person do? I hope the professor forgives me. Anyway, having only sat in Kingair's before, and listening and watching a myriad of them start up, takeoff, or land, I knew my way around in it pretty well. After playing rock, paper, scissors to see who got to sit up front on the takeoff (there were three of us, and 2nd place got to sit up front on landing) I won, and took my "right"ful place up front. The pilot was nice enough to talk to me throughout the start up process and I'm convinced that I could do it now. Engines started, ASOS received... let's taxi. Pre-takeoff checks - Prop governors, and of course... beta range. Pre-takeoff checks completed, let's go...

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/takeoff.jpg

While the line service was nice enough to fuel us up, they apparently didn't care to wash the windshield...

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/throttlequad.jpg

hmm.... this looks familiar....

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/cockpitjeff.jpg

Passing through 2,000 feet, the pilot told me that it was "my airplane" and that I should climb to 5,500 feet and steer right 2-7-0. I hit five, five right on the money, and once it's trimmed out, the C90 is truly a dream to fly. I enjoyed my short stint in the cockpit by practicing turns to heading, climbing and descending turns, and even a few steep turns.

Alas, my turn was over, and I switched off the "fasten seatbelt light" and made my way to the rear of the aircraft. Once in the back, I enjoyed the incredibly quiet ride. I spent half the time talking to my friend without our headsets on. More turns, climbs, descents, and it's my friends turn, and about time to land.

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/backseats.jpg

Bill brought us back to the airport, and the pilot even let him enter the pattern before taking over the controls...

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/kingairbill.jpg

So, was it worth skipping class? Well, what do you think? The only thing that could have made the event better is if the marine was an MEI... It would be cool to have some multi-turbine logged. The only downside is that I have to make a cross country later today in... (groan) a cessna 172... I got spoiled on a King Air.

http://hhs1.swsc.k12.ar.us/claybrook/kingair/kingairjeff.jpg

So, be honest... who's jealous? (my brother was!)

Jeff
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"No Kitty, Bad Kitty!"

[Erick_Cantu]

I am! :-lol

I gotta start flyin' the real thing....

-E

[font size=1]"You have Clearance, Clarence"

"Roger, Roger. What's our vector, Victor?"[/font size]

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[Biff]

> The only downside is that I have to make a cross country
> later today in... (groan) a cessna 172...
> I got spoiled on a King Air.

All I can say is I wish I had your kind of problems http://gathering.tweakers.net/i/s/wink.gif

[toddrf]

Yes, the King Air is a dream to fly and it rolls reasonably well, but that wasn't my choice and at the time it scared the begeebies out of me...

Todd :-wave

[jbdc9]

But then again, aren't all Beeches a dream to fly? Seriously, I can't recall having flown a crappy flying Beech of any model. Even worn out, 10,000 hour check hauling Baron 58's are sweet machines. Then there's the Skipper; very slow but very nice to fly...

I never flew the King Air but have 3000+ hrs in 1900's. Love that airplane. The D performed better than the C and had the EFIS goodies, but the C actually handled better, a bit lighter on the controls... almost like a Baron. Very nice. Plus, the D is butt ugly. Yep, I'm jealous, I wanna fly a King Air!

Cool pics you took, btw.

John

[helo_av8or]

Well, I don't have quite the experience that you do, Todd (or maybe the sense), but I wasn't at all scared. I absolutely had a blast, and if I had stayed too much longer, they would have had to pry me away from the cockpit. Also, my David Clark headset got used to the kingair and nearly rejected the Cessna 172 this afternoon... oh well, just a few more years...

Jeff
________________________________________
http://flightsimmers.net/helipad/fs2kscenery/cartman.gif
"No Kitty, Bad Kitty!"

[toddrf]

Actually since I wasn't flying it at the time it rolled it had nothing to do with any lack of sense or presence of sense that I have. The big thing about the B-200 is that it feels very solid. There is 0 slop and the plane is very responsive in cruise. It is a bit sluggish as all heavier/light twins are at low power settings, but I had a dual engine failure in the sim at Flight Safety on downwind at Denver INTL and the airplane gave me plenty of time to assess the situation and make an early turn. I ended up planting it on the ramp for lack of makeable runway and the airplane was stable the entire descent albeit I flew it like I would have flown a 172 which meant that I made the turn 180 degrees pointed the nose at the ramp and dropped full flaps. I kept about 110 indicated all the way down and then bled it all off in the flare. Very precise and very solid feel to the aircraft.

I also did some low level flying in and around San Francisco in the sim and the airplane responds very well to deliberate control inputs and it capable of very tight turns.

In the real world it is just a dream to fly IFR. The "schoolhouse" has a full EFIS model I forget if that is a T or an R designator in the Army and I am fixing to go over and log some time in that soon. That and the SHERPA C-23 (The flying baby beluga).

I have never flown the 90 but it is a very pretty machine.

I am really glad you had the chance.

Todd :-wave

PS Don't let anyone fool you though, aside from pressurization and long distance travel, I would gladly dump a King Air for the Caravan. That is the nuts and bolts airplane to beat all and from what I hear, although I have yet to fly a real one, I would gladly dump the King Air for the PC-12 all things being of equal importance.

[yv35p]

You are right Todd..i flew Cessna Caravans here in Venezuela ...they are an absolute dream to fly!..i was carrying newspapers out of Caracas, flying only at night and never will forget those trips..i'm currently flying an IAI Westwind 2, and sometimes i would like to go back and fly the way i did for some years with the great Caravans..About the PC12..i would love to fly one..who knows..some day..the comments that i've heard from experienced pilots are all favorables..one friend of mine who's a Cheyenne II captain flew one PC12 and felt in love, he keeps talking about that plane and playing every lottery around here with the goal of buying one PC12 before anything else hahah!!

Great shots Jeff!

[toddrf]

The room in both the Pilatus and the 208 is the best thing. I sat in the PC-12 in Florida and it is a big pilot's dream. The 208 is just in a class by itself because of all the doors and the typical Cessna approach to building airplanes. I have yet to climb into any Cessna that isn't built for pilots. The 425 is lovely because of the seating and the fact that youc an actually spread yourself out once situated.

I would love to fly a 208 in SA although the Westwind is also a nice dream.

Todd :-wave

[yv35p]

Totally agree..the Cessnas are pilot's airplanes..i came to the Westwind from a Citation II,good for the passengers but not so good for us, the pilots...at first i didn't like very much the WW, pitch forces way too high!, and some other stuff..but, anyway, when somebody ask "what's your favorite airplane" i always say "the one that makes your living!"..so right now is the Westwind..
By the way, i flew also Cessna Conquest I, the same company that owned tha Caravans had one 425 and for a short period even a Caravan II, the "Turbine Titan" for corporate transport..i think that the magic Cessna handling coupled with the wonder that is the PT6 turbine just makes any pilot's dream!
Also, special mention for the Beech Baron, in my case the E55..no words would make justice to that little bastard!!...my name in this post "YV35P" are the numbers of an E55 that i used to fly some years ago with my best friend who sadly was killed in '94..

Greetings from Caracas

Carlos

carfac@go.com

[toddrf]

Hola!

The 425 I is a great airplane. It is a Cessna and I love its handling. It is heavy and solid and you can really crank it in the pattern. But then you can do that with every Cessna built and if it is a 182 or larger it feels solid.

Love those airplanes.

I am going to get typedin the Citation X or the Challenger one of these days after the bills are paid. The X is a great machine. I saw a Citation 505 land on gravel once and I thought, Wow, a jet that you can fly off your back yard. Great airplanes. Heaven help the world if they ever decide to build RJs

Todd :-wave

[yv35p]

Wow!

I keep counting Citation X's when i can't sleep haha!..what an incredible machine..have one in the hangar next to ours, sometimes i just keep looking at that plane, simply perfect..Some time ago i went close of flying a Challenger 601-3A, but we had a terrible crisis involving banks here in Venezuela back in 95 and the company that was planning to buy the jet was, well, a bank..or more precisely, an ex-bank hahah!!..

Wish the best for you and your family