Pro Line Fusion for the King Air features commercial aviation’s first full touchscreen capability on all three main flight displays. The flight deck’s three 14-inch displays are interchangeable, high-resolution touchscreen and cursor-controlled. Other performance-enhancing capabilities include:
- Integrated touchscreen checklists
- Intuitive graphical touchscreen flight planning
- High-resolution SVS with patented airport dome graphics
- Convenient presets to reconfigure all three displays with a single touch
- Full multi-sensor flight management system
- Available automatic wireless database and chart uploads
- Open and scalable architecture for future upgrades and mandates
In addition to the avionics, the company is making enhancements to the King Air’s cabin technologies, which will offer an improved and connected passenger experience. The personal device-centric cabin will include international or domestic Wi-Fi as standard on the King Air 350i and 250 aircraft and optional on the C90GTx. Also standard on all three models will be electronically dimmable window shades, offering a simple interface that provides clearer views and darker shading at the touch of a button.
Upgraded King Air 250 turboprops are expected to begin delivering in the third quarter of 2015, followed by King Air 350i/ER in the fourth quarter and King Air C90GTx in early 2016.
In-service King Air aircraft with Pro Line 21 can be upgraded to the Pro Line Fusion touchscreen displays through Textron Aviation’s company-owned service centers. Differences, initial and recurrent pilot training for the Pro Line Fusion King Airs will be offered at TRU Simulation + Training’s new ProFlight training center near Tampa, Florida. Additionally, TRU will offer aircraft maintenance training for the new models in its newly renovated Wichita, Kansas facility.
More than 7,300 Beechcraft King Air turboprops have been delivered to customers around the world since 1964, making it the best-selling business turboprop family in the world. The worldwide fleet has surpassed 60 million flight hours in its first 50 years, serving roles in all branches of the U.S. military, and flying commercial missions ranging from traditional passenger and cargo transport to electronic and imagery surveillance, air ambulance, airway calibration, photographic mapping, training and weather modification.
