MEBA2012: Beechcraft displays full turboprop family at MEBA

Scott Plumb, HBC’s vice president of sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa described MEBA as giving the company “a great venue to present our aircraft to government representatives, corporate decision-makers, business people and high-net-worth individuals throughout the region”.

 

With a growing recognition and acceptance of general aviation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, Hawker Beechcraft hopes to attract more customers for the King Air family, which the company sees as being especially well suited for intra-regional business and leisure travel and for the growing demand for special mission aircraft.

 

The King Air C90GTx is the latest derivative of the original King Air from 1961, with the shorter fuselage with three cabin windows.

 

But the King Air has constantly evolved and improved, and the 2010 C90GTx is a very much more powerful and sophisticated aircraft than its forebears, with increased gross weight and composite winglets – which improve climb performance and further increase fuel efficiency – as well as a Rockwell Collins Proline 21 avionics package. Though smaller than the Model 200 and Model 300 ‘Super’ King Airs, the King Air 90’s famed squared-oval design is 50% larger than some very light jets, and seats up to seven passengers in comfort, while also offering a private lavatory and an in-flight accessible, heated and pressurised baggage storage area.

 

Also at MEBA are examples of the larger Model 200 and 300 series King Air. These were originally marketed as Super King Airs, though Beechcraft officially dropped the Super King Air name in 1996.

 

Like the King Air C90GTx, the King Air 250 features new composite winglets but also has lightweight composite propellers, which deliver improved runway and climb performance, as well as increased range, and speed. The aircraft also has new ergonomic yokes for the pilots, and a new ram air recovery system that ensures maximum power even when the anti-icing system is activated.

 

Finally, Hawker Beechcraft is presenting the King Air 350i at MEBA.

 

The King Air 350i is claimed to be the greenest aircraft in its segment, carrying more passengers farther on less fuel, and features a CMS-Infotainment System offering high definition TV, movies or presentations, as well as ports for personal audio and video devices, including laptops and headphones.

 

The aircraft also has Beechcraft’s revolutionary Flexcabin, which is modelled on the cabins of top-of-the-line Hawker business jets, and which can be rapidly reconfigured.