Beechcraft and Pratt & Whitney Canada Sign Engine Service Agreement to Support Wheels Up King Air 350i Fleet

Las Vegas - On Monday, Beechcraft Corporation announced at the 2013 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition that it has signed a long-term engine service agreement with Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) to support the PT6A-60A engines powering the King Air 350i aircraft recently ordered by private aviation membership company Wheels Up. Under this renewable agreement, the Wheels Up King Air 350i fleet will be enrolled in P&WC’s world-class Gold Eagle Service Plan (ESP Program).

Wheels Up named Beechcraft as its comprehensive aircraft maintenance services provider for North America and Western Europe as part of its King Air 350i order for up to 105 aircraft announced in August.

“We are delighted to partner with Pratt & Whitney Canada to provide this comprehensive engine maintenance service for our customer Wheels Up, in support of the largest order of propeller aircraft in general aviation history,” says Christi Tannahill, Beechcraft senior vice president, Global Customer Support. “This elite program has a proven track record of optimizing costs and providing peace of mind, which will be beneficial for Wheels Up and how it will utilize its fleet of King Airs.”

“We are very proud to conclude this service agreement with Beechcraft in support of Wheels Up’s King Air 350i fleet,” says Denis Parisien, P&WC vice president, General Aviation. “Thanks to its complete range of maintenance coverage, our ESP Program will provide Wheels Up peace of mind and predictability.”

Coverage provided under the Gold ESP Program includes parts and shop labor for scheduled engine overhaul and hot section inspection, unscheduled engine and line replaceable unit (LRU) maintenance, rental engine support, trouble shooting and mobile repair team (MRT) support for unscheduled aircraft on ground (AOG) situations, and required product support improvements at shop visits.

The agreement also includes an airframe-mounted Aircraft Data Acquisition System (ADAS) and Data Transmission Unit (DTU) and associated services for automated engine health management and trend monitoring. “The benefits of our engine health management system and Gold ESP Program include cost optimization, increased aircraft availability, reduced pilot workload and higher aircraft resale value,” notes Parisien.