Innova gives new life to King Air 90s

Debuting for the first time publicly this year at EAA AirVenture, Innova’s King Air upgrades offer King Air owners a way to significantly extend the life of a strong airframe.

Innova selected the BendixKing AeroVue system because they believe it will be installable across the entire model line, from the first King Air ever produced to one rolling off the assembly line today. Other systems only work with certain serial number series. Innova plans to make an installation kit that can be used in the field, which is a change in direction for the company. “We plan to make this kit available as widely as possible and easy to install,” said Dave Miner, Innova’s program manager on the panel upgrade.

Tentative pricing is set at $348,000 for the full changeover, and downtime is expected to be 30 days or less. Certification is targeted for December.

Meanwhile, Innova is hard at work certifying a major engine upgrade using the GE H80 engines. The engines were installed just before the show, so company pilots tested the performance on the way to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Anecdotally, they said the aircraft will climb at 4,000 feet a minute and burn significantly less fuel and go faster than the stock engines.

The company hasn’t released pricing or a timetable on certification. They are still in the early stages: Propellers, installation method, and other details still need to be determined.

In keeping with Innova’s philosophy, the upgrades can be taken individually. CEO Tom Seeber said Innova tries to accommodate customers, “wherever they are in the upgrade process.”