Aircraft Information
Aircraft Make: Hawker-Siddeley
Aircraft Model: HS780
Aircraft Nickname: Andover
Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane ME Turboprop
Category: Airplane
Class: Multi Engine Land
Engine Description: Twin Engine

First Flown Information
Sequence First Flown:
Date First Flown: 06/27/1989
Location First Flown: Boscombe Down, England
Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: Empire Test Pilot School. Evans

Aircraft Experience
As of: 06/06/2020
Number of Hours Flown: 1
Number of Times Flown: 1
Other Aircraft Models Associated:

Recollections: First stop on a USNTPS Staff Field trip which went to the UK (Empire Test Pilot School), Germany (German Flight Test Center in Manching), Switzerland (Swiss Test Center in Stans and Emmen), and France (French Test Pilot School–EPNER). My logbook says only “Evans”, so–in writing this recollection decided to see if I could figure out who that was and, at the same time, recall my memories of the flight. I searched on the SETP website for “Evans” and there was a single name from the UK, an ex-RAF bloke. So, I sent the following email:

Dr. Evans. This will start as a somewhat strange email but I hope you can help.

I’m an ex-Navy test pilot, currently a test pilot in the US for the FAA. Getting a bit older, I’ve started looking back on my flying career and am assembling recollections of the 180+ airplanes I’ve flown. Unfortunately, my log book is sometimes lacking in detail.

This is where (maybe) you come in!

Were you, perhaps, a Tutor at ETPS in June of 1989? I ask because, on June 27, 1989 I had the good fortune to fly Andover XS606 at ETPS while I was in Boscombe as part of a USNTPS staff field trip. My log book simply says “Evans”. So…I am hoping that’s YOU?

For what they’re worth, my two recollections from this trip were: (1) the Captain I was flying with was (I believe—and my apologies if I got this wrong!) fairly new to the Andover…but, thankfully, we had an Engineer who was an expert (if that’s correct, do you recall the name of the Engineer)….he basically told us what to do. and (2) I got to do a takeoff and landing FROM THE GRASS…in this relatively large airplane!

Thank you for any info you have and if I got the “wrong Evans”, I beg your pardon and wish you a good day.

Aircraft Information
Aircraft Make: Transall
Aircraft Model: C-160
Aircraft Nickname: Anybody know?
Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane ME Turboprop
Category: Airplane
Class: Multi Engine Land
Engine Description: Twin Engine

First Flown Information
Sequence First Flown:
Date First Flown: 06/29/1989
Location First Flown: Manching
Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: German Flight Test Center, Manching

Aircraft Experience
As of: 06/06/2020
Number of Hours Flown: 1
Number of Times Flown: 1
Other Aircraft Models Associated:

Recollections: This flight was conducted as a Qualitative Evaluation (QE) during a USNTPS Staff Field trip which went to the UK (Empire Test Pilot School), Germany (German Flight Test Center in Manching), Switzerland (Swiss Test Center in Stans and Emmen), and France (French Test Pilot School–EPNER). During this trip–designed to foster international working relationships between Test Pilot schools, test pilots and flight test centers–I flew 5 new (to me) aircraft in the course of a week, including gliders, fast jets and turbroprops.

Unfortunately, my notes and memories of this flight in the C-160 Transall are sparse. I do recall that the airplane was solid and–as a P-3 guy–I felt at home. Next stop: Switzerland.

Aircraft Information
Aircraft Make: Lockheed
Aircraft Model: C130
Aircraft Nickname: Hercules
Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane ME Turboprop
Category: Airplane
Class: Multi Engine Land
Engine Description: Twin Engine

First Flown Information
Sequence First Flown:
Date First Flown: 01/09/1991
Location First Flown: NAS Patuxent River, MD
Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: VMR-352, Andy L

Aircraft Experience
As of: 07/29/2020
Number of Hours Flown: 12
Number of Times Flown: 8
Other Aircraft Models Associated: KC-130, L-382, L-100

Recollections:

–The P-3 and the C-130 share the same engines (though one of them is “upside down” compared to the other…a source of debate between Orion and Hercules pilots) but that’s where the similarity stops. The C-130 is the “pickup truck” of large airplanes, tough and capable.
–I ended up flying a KC-130 with a Marine Corps refueling squadron, VMGR-352. This was right before Desert Storm and the Marines had been working on a project to include defensive counter-measures onto the KC-130. It was being tested at NAS Patuxent River and my skipper at TPS (“Big Bob” Price) suggested that a few of us accompany him on the airplane to finish the project and get it over into the theatre “in case it was needed”. I had familiarity with the defensive systems installed on the “one of a kind” KC-130 at Pax River, because they were very similar to a project I’d assisted with on the P-3 (both airplanes can use whatever defensive help they can get!).
–I flew the airplane 8 times (I believe first transiting to Bahrain, then doing some local training sorties out of Bahrain and, finally, on the first wave of Operation Desert Storm, when I the opportunity to watch the professionals of the VMGR-352 “Raiders” fly what I remember as a 4-ship, night-time refueling mission that was just flat-out amazing. The threat from the Iraqi’s was briefed as being extensive but, in the end, the might of the US Military dwarfed any response.

Aircraft Information
Aircraft Make: Beechcraft
Aircraft Model: 300
Aircraft Nickname: King Air
Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane ME Turboprop
Category: Airplane
Class: Multi Engine Land
Engine Description: Turbine

First Flown Information
Sequence First Flown:
Date First Flown: 09/10/2002
Location First Flown: Beech Field, Wichita, KS
Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: Beech flight test, Randy Reynolds

Aircraft Experience
As of: 07/29/2020
Number of Hours Flown: 26
Number of Times Flown: 19
Other Aircraft Models Associated: Beech 350 (Marketing name), other King Airs

Recollections: This is the biggest of the “normal” King Airs (90, 100, 200, 300) and I was privileged to get to do some test on an unusually heavy version, a Special Mission aircraft with significantly increased gross weight. Field performance, rejected takeoffs and the like, it was very interesting.

The King Air has had a long and enviable production run, first flying in the early 1960’s it continues in production 60 years later. One experience I had illustrated to me the reason why it’s had such a successful run. I was flying a Hawker 4000 business jet, doing crosswind landing tests at the Topeka, KS airport. We had a King Air 350 with us, providing support (wind station to precisely measure the winds; a mechanic, etc). As the wind died down, we all shutdown at Topeka to discuss the plan. It was decided we’d all head back to Beech Field in Wichita, about 110 nm as the crow flies. We started up our airplanes and taxied to the runway. Being in our “fast bizjet”, we decided we’d takeoff first, so we didn’t “run down” the “slow King Air”. Off we blasted, climbing to something like 30,000 ft. We flew close to Mmo in the cruise and descent and soon landed at Beech’s home airport. As we were shutting down and unstrapping, in taxied that King Air. “How’d he do that?” we all thought. The answer was the airplane is the perfect short-haul machine and gives up little in terms of time. If you don’t need to go a long way, and you want to haul a bunch of stuff, it’s hard to beat the King Air family.

Aircraft Information
Aircraft Make: Beechcraft
Aircraft Model: Model 200
Aircraft Nickname: King Air
Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane ME Turboprop
Category: Airplane
Class: Multi Engine Land
Engine Description: Twin Engine

First Flown Information
Sequence First Flown:
Date First Flown: 08/31/1999
Location First Flown: NAS Patuxent River, MD
Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: Instrument proficiency with Dan Wells

Aircraft Experience
As of: 07/29/2020
Number of Hours Flown: 47
Number of Times Flown: 29
Other Aircraft Models Associated: C-12 Huron, B200GT, BE-200, Beech 250

Recollections:

–The 200 is probably my favorite of the King Air line. Bigger than the 90 but not too big.
–The Military operates the 200 as the “C-12 Huron” (another nickname I didn’t know about!)
–I flew it just a few times in the Navy, as it was introduced to the school replacing the U-21. Most of my flying in a 200 was after I retired from Navy…on a single certification project, flown with a company called AEROTEC, flying a 200 that was modified with a number of aerodynamic modifications, including Winglets, a new prop, a new inlet and other tweaks. This was all rolled up into the “Ultimate Performance Package” (UPP) that, I believe, was eventually sold to Beechcraft for inclusion on their production line.