Hawker Beechcraft Corporation has added a King Air 350ER special mission aircraft to its demonstrator fleet.
Making the announcement at this week’s Paris Airshow, Hawker Beechcraft said the aircraft is equipped with the following specialised special mission equipment:
- Search Radome: A belly mounted search radome designed for the latest digital search radars. The radome is available as a kit in two variations, one electrically tuned to digital maritime radars and the other tuned to optimise overland radars.
- EO/IR Lift and Fairing: The EO/IR lift allows a Star Safire/HD or MX-15 turret camera system to extend during mission operation, yet retract to minimise aerodynamic draft during the transition flight to/from the surveillance area.
- Air Ambulance: Two medical sleds and a medical cabinet are positioned along the right side of the interior. These are fully functioning medical sleds from Spectrum Aeromed. With this installation, the aircraft is available for air ambulance missions when needed.
- Troop Seating: The left side of the aircraft interior is fitted with five forward facing chairs, demonstrating the Aviation Fabricators (AvFab) 11-chair interior configuration. The new AvFab Traveler style chairs make efficient use of cabin space, are light weight and allow quick reconfiguration of the cabin for missions ranging from full troop seating to air ambulance and cargo.
The King Air 350ER has been especially successful with its extended range, long endurance and the flexibility to be configured for a variety of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and maritime surveillance missions, as well as air ambulance, utility transport and other special mission roles.
The manufacturer says it has future plans to bring the demonstrator to the Asia Pacific region following stops in Europe, Africa and Latin America.
(Hawker Beechcraft)
