Beechcraft King Air aircraft are among the most popular aircraft to charter on Airvel. We take a look at King Air charter and how it offers high-caliber performance at excellent value.

A Summary of King Air Charters

Beechcraft King Air dominate the turboprop market and are some of the most popular aircraft for charter. These aircraft offer superb value for short flights with less than eight passengers, providing an affordable charter solution for both corporate and private travel.

The Beechcraft King Air 100 is a solid choice for short flights between any destinations. The King Air 200 is widely regarded as the best American-built aircraft of all time (it’s also the best selling turboprop business aircraft of all time). Then the King Air 350 provides additional space and comfort.

Due to their relatively low maintenance and running costs, King air charters offer some of the best rates per flying hour. Plus, because there is so many of them, it’s easy to find an aircraft at the airport you want to use.

Turboprops versus Jets

Beechcraft King Air are the most recognizable fleet of twin-turboprop aircraft. They’ve been in production since the 1960s and maximize the benefits of choosing a turboprop over a jet for your flight.

Turboprops have lower thrust than jets, so they fly lower and slower. They are very fuel efficient at low speeds and low altitudes, making them cheaper for shorter journeys.

All flights start and end at low altitude. It’s only on longer flights when a significant percentage of the time spent is spent at high altitude, which would make jets more fuel and cost efficient.

Although jets are faster, the time difference is marginal on short flights of less than 500 nautical miles. It’s the fuel saving that makes turboprops like the King Air such good value.

Some turboprops are even faster than jets, such as the Piaggio Avanti business props. However, they don’t have the same cost reliability as a king air charter. These planes are relatively cheap to buy, inexpensive to maintain, and have some of the lowest per hour costs for their field.

Why and When Would I Want a King Air Charter?

King Air charters are best for:

• Short flights of less than 500 nautical miles
• Charters for less than eight passengers
• Flights to small airports with short or dirt runways

They are cheap and very efficient over shorter distances. This makes them an excellent choice on some of the most popular air charter routes in North America, including:

• VNY to LAS (Los Angeles to Las Vegas)
• TEB to IAD (Teterboro to Dulles)
• BOS to TEB (Boston to Teterboro)
• LAS to SNA (Las Vegas to Orange County)
• TEB to YYZ (Teterboro to Toronto)

Different King Air Charters

Beechcraft King Air C90

With capacity for up to five passengers, the entry-level King Air was first constructed in 1964. It’s an aircraft best used on very short flights of less than 300 nautical miles. As it doesn’t need a long runway the C90 can land at almost every airport, making it a good choice for short hops between many destinations in one day.

These King Air charters are popular for their unparalleled combination of cabin size, per hour costs, and load carrying performance. And while it doesn’t have the same high-speed cruising capability as other light jets, this rarely makes more than a few minutes difference on short flights.

Typical costs are around USD 1400 – 1600 per flying hour for round trip flights.

Beechcraft King Air 100

A stretched derivative of the C90, the King Air 100 dominates the turboprop market. It has a longer wing span and a larger cabin, with an ability to cruise 1300 nautical miles without refueling. Typically a King Air 100 cabin is configured with six to eight seats. Its price per hour is unrivaled by any private jet and the flying range means it can be used for almost all short and medium haul flights.

It can take off from runways as short as 3,200 feet and can land on dirt airstrips when required. Another improvement from the C90 is the four-bladed propellers that reduce engine noise. All this adds up to a classic corporate commuter aircraft, taking passengers between major cities or out to remote locations.

Typical costs are around USD 1800 – 2000 per flying hour for round trip flights.

Beechcraft King Air 200 Charter

The King Air 200 is a legend of the air charter industry and the best selling business turboprop of all time. Compared to the King Air 100 is has an increased cabin size and enhanced millage. This results is an outstanding blend of speed, range and value. While larger than its predecessors, the 200 can land on runways as short as 2,579 feet. They’re also very versatile with take off and landing, meaning they can be pretty much fly anywhere, anytime.

King air charters have capacity to take eight passengers in complete comfort, with a large, pressurized cabin that is quiet enough to conduct business on board. They can also land on dirt airstrips and access airports that have noise restrictions. What makes the aircraft so impressive is the comparison to other small and medium sized jets. On a 500-mile flight a King Air charter may take 20 minutes or so, but it will be considerably cheaper and more flexible.

Typical costs are around USD 1800 – 2000 per flying hour for round trip flights.

King Air 250

Unveiled in 2010 the King Air 250 can do just about anything you need a small aircraft to do. There is hardly any place it can’t fly. It has exceptional short runway capability, hot and high-end performance, plus a cruising altitude higher than most other aircraft in its class. This aircraft offers all the advantages of a 200 King Air charter, but with a bigger cabin that allows for up to ten passengers.

Like all the King Air models, having such an abundance of them makes for cheaper charters. Pricing is always based on aircraft availability and their positioning requirements. If an aircraft is already based at your preferred departure airport, there are no additional costs in getting it there from elsewhere. So king air charters are a reliable choice wherever you want to fly from.

Typical costs are around USD 1800 – 2000 per flying hour for round trip flights.

King Air Charter – 350

The premium turboprop in the Beechcraft fleet, the King Air 350 is one of very turboprops that can cruise at altitudes over 30,000 feet. Combined with its rugged design, this high-altitude performance makes it a safe choice in adverse weather conditions. This aircraft is three feet longer than the 200 and has the cabin space that’s needed for longer flights. It also has a larger payload and a standard cabin configuration that fits nine seated passengers.

Typical costs are around USD 1900 – 2200 per flying hour for round trip flights.

King Air Charter The Easy Way

Airvel is the world’s leading booking engine for charter flights. You can fly anywhere, anytime. Just search for aircraft from the airports of your choice and compare the results. You’ll find that King Air charters come in at excellent value for short to mid-range flights.