Skydiving from a Beechcraft King Air 90
King Air 90: The Basics
- Climbs at 1500ft/min
- Jump run speed is85knots
- Left engine at idle during exit
- Left propeller feathered for wing suiters
King Air 90: Take Off
Maximum 15 skydivers per flight
Might be reduced due to density altitude
No weight behind the red line
6 x 2 row seating on the benches
3 on the floor
King Air 90: Seating
- Do not move and cause weight shift changes
- The sliding door shall be kept closed until 1500ft above ground level
- After 1500ft AGL sliding door may be opened slightly to allow cool air in.
- Secure all pilot chutes before opening the door!
King Air 90: Jump Run
- 2 Jump lights, RED and GREEN are located fore of the sliding door
- RED light comes on 2 minutes before the exit. You should be ready to exit when the red light is on
- GREEN light comes on when the first group should exit
- A GREEN light followed by a RED lights is the sign for STOP DROP. Remain in the aircraft and return to your original seating position
King Air 90: Dangers of Striking the Tail During Exit
- The tail of the King Air 90 is near the exit door
- There is a danger of striking the door horizontal stabilizer part of the tail during exit
- To mitigate this risk, the pilot will lower the flaps to raise the tail section
- Jumpers, especially those wearing camera, track and wing suits should still take utmost care to fly small out of the door and only open their wings once they have the full aircraft in view flying away from them
King Air 90: Exit Weight and Shift
- Time between exits 7-12 seconds depending on headwinds at altitude
- Exit spacing times will be briefed by the pilot before take-off
- Do not move to the door while the previous group is setting up for exit, wait until they leave before you get up
King Air 90: Deployment, Canopy Flight and Landing
Be extra vigilant with your lookout for other jumpers during tracking, deployment, canopy flight and landing. There will be 14 other parachutists to around you and the risk of collision is far greater than with Cessna operations.