Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

The Blackhawk Group has received two supplemental type certificate approvals, one from the FAA for a Piper Meridian heated anti-ice system and another from EASA for a Hartzell five-blade composite propeller upgrade on King Air 350/360s. The company also launched a mobile support service at its Avex Performance Center in Broomfield, Colorado.
Blackhawk’s heated anti-ice system gives the Meridian the same elevator-horn protection that Piper designed for the M600 and M700 turboprop singles. According to Blackhawk, this “prevents ice from bridging the gap between the elevator horn and the horizontal stabilizer, providing smooth and unrestricted flight control movement in all conditions.”
Now, European owners of King Air 350s and 360s with Blackhawk’s XP67A Engine+ upgrade can also add the five-blade Hartzell carbon-fiber propeller. The powerplant upgrade replaces the original Pratt &amp; Whitney Canada PT6A-60A with 1,200-shp PT6A-67A engines, which provide 24% more available shaft horsepower, according to Blackhawk. Combined, the XP67A engines and five-blade Hartzell propellers raise the King Air 350/360’s cruise speed to 337 ktas, which is five knots faster than the engine upgrade alone. Time to climb to FL350 also drops to less than 18 minutes.
Weighing about 10 pounds less per side than the standard four-blade aluminum propellers, Hartzell’s composite propellers have a smaller diameter and reduce cabin and exterior noise. These newer propellers have accumulated more than 50,000 flight-test hours and withstood lightning- and bird-strike tests.&nbsp;
“This EASA approval gives King Air 350/360 operators across Europe access to one of the most capable and popular performance packages we have ever developed,” said Edwin Black, president of The Blackhawk Group’s Proprietary Upgrades division. “The combination of the XP67A and Hartzell five-blade composite propeller delivers a significant improvement in aircraft performance.”
Meanwhile, by adding mobile support at Broomfield, Blackhawk gives customers access to dedicated maintenance vehicles and teams to help with unscheduled maintenance and troubleshooting. Its teams are equipped to conduct borescope inspections, light engine maintenance, fault isolation, avionics support, landing gear services, system servicing, and select propeller changes.
“Our customers operate on their own schedules, and maintenance needs don’t always arise conveniently near one of our facilities,” said Blackhawk Group CEO Chad Cundiff. “This new mobile capability brings the experience and technical resources of our Performance Center network directly to the aircraft, wherever it is. It’s one more example of building our support services around how our customers actually fly.”

News and issues about aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), covering all segments of the aviation industry; and modifications for aircraft and engines. Subjects include product support of aircraft, engines and avionics, MRO company mergers, acquisitions, announcements and personnel, Airworthiness Directives, Supplemental Type Certificate approvals and other topics.

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