Enhanced Aero is making a bold claim for its King Air 200 GTO, on display at NBAA. “For less than $3 million, it gives customers a King Air that is better than new,” says president Grady O’Hara.
The 305kt-plus airplane has been given Enhanced Aero’s Diamond package, O’Hara says. This features uprated P&WC PT6A-52 engines, BLR winglets, McCauley 4-bladed propellers and a brand new interior – all for around $1.5m.
“The interior has brand new tables with highly detailed inlays. And, where seats didn’t have tables there are now small tables,” he says. The modifications also include the installation of Garmin’s G1000 glass cockpit which, coupled with the -52 engines, makes the King Air 200GTO RVSM compliant.
The entire instrumentation is removed and replaced with the G1000 system, including autopilots. When the individual modifications are all installed, O’Hara says the result is “nicer than a brand new aircraft”.
Although Enhanced Aero has not finished testing the combination of the BLR winglet with the -52 engines, O’Hara is hopeful for very positive results.
Enhanced Aero does not carry out the work directly, it does own the STC for the engine installation, as well as the interior – which features LCD screens for each passenger and has a nose camera for passengers to watch the taxi phase. But unlike many other aircraft, the GTO has one in the tail so “you can see the airport disappear”.
Customer can take their King Airs to their choice of service center where the kit awaits them. “The only thing I’m missing right now is a paint shop. Our goal is to have an aircraft turned round in 60 days.
Aside from the GTO, the company also offers an STC-based 5-blade propeller upgrade for the -42/-41 engines. Incidentally O’Hara says the name is not a stab at Beechcraft. “I had always planned on calling it the GTO. Those are mine and my wife’s initials,” he says.
Source: Flight Daily News
