Page 30 - AAA JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2015 Online Magazine

TURE

PILA
FEATURE PILATUS
FEA
TUS

The Most Wanted Swiss Single

The cost savings associated with having a single engine makes the PC-12 NG all the more desirable
By Jay Menon

OVER TWENTY YEARS AFTER THE FIRST BMW DesignworksuSA executive interior weight (13 lb / 5.9 kg) and maintenance
delivery of the Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, options, a new electric landing gear cost savings.
the business turboprop continues to be system, external LED lighting, a wireless “The cost savings associated with
the “super single” of the Swiss aircraft Connected Flight Deck system, and a Wi- having a single engine makes the aircraft
company. Fi passenger entertainment system. all the more desirable,” says Ignaz
The Pilatus PC-12 NG, which has gained The aircraft, with a seating capacity Gretener, VP General Aviation.
a reputation for outstanding versatility, for nine passengers in its standard “A PC-12 NG with six executives aboard
performance, reliability, and operational layout, is now powered by a 1,200-shp burns less than half the fuel of a midsize
flexibility, has become one of the most Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67P jet with the same payload. This makes the
popular turbine-powered business turboprop engine, giving it 15 per cent PC-12 NG the better choice both financially
aircraft with over 1,300 units already sold greater thermodynamic power, thanks and environmentally,” he says.
worldwide. Strong points include having a to higher heat tolerance due to improved The current PC-12 production version,
cabin that’s larger than that of a King Air compressor and turbine blade design. The the PC-12 NG, competes with the Daher-
B200, a flat cabin floor and a 4.3 ft.- high new engine can safely operate 50C to 60C Socata TBM 850/900, the Cessna Caravan,
by 4.4 ft.-wide aft cargo door, along with hotter than the earlier PT6A-67B engine. the Beechcraft King Air Series.
comparatively slow takeoff and landing The PT6A-67P’s extra power enables the 1,300 PC-12s, including more than
speeds, excellent short-field performance PC-12 NG to climb from sea level to an 500 PC-12 NGs, were built through 2015 .
and easy handling characteristics. altitude of 30,000 feet at 1,920 feet per The PC-12 NG has light emitting diodes
In an effort to keep the demand high minute, and cruises at speeds up to 280 (LED) to enable landing, taxi, recognition
for the aircraft, Pilatus introduced five knots (322 mph), 21% quicker than the and navigation. The tail-mounted strobe
new features in the latest models in original aircraft. light has been eliminated by incorporating
2014. Incorporating new technology and By replacing the PC-12’s original its function into the two wingtip strobes.
responding to customer feedback, the hydraulic landing gear with a new electric The LED lights are even more reliable due
new 2014 PC-12 NG includes six new system, PC-12 operators realize both to their solid state design, and produce
30 ASIAN AIRLINES & AIRPORTS JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2015 WWW.ASIANAIRLINES-AIRPORTS.COM