Hamilton Montana

[donv]

I just took a group from HIO to Hamilton Montana. We had 12 people, so 6 went in the 980, and 6 in a King Air 350i. It was an interesting comparison... we took exactly the same amount of time (to the minute, according to FlightAware), and the King Air guy told me he burned about 1,000 pounds. I burned about 650...

We were filed the exact same altitudes and speeds... to be honest, I was surprised because I thought the King Air 350 would be a few knots faster, but apparently not. The King Air guy told me he typically sees 295-300, which is about the same as the 980.

It really makes me appreciate the Commander!

[Steve binnette]

How did the climbs compare?  The king air must have been farther from GW than you.

[donv]

I don't know how the climbs compare. We both went to FL270.

I was about 10,200, so just a bit below max gross. I would agree that with 6 passengers and 2 crew, they should have been further from their max gross than I was with 5 passengers and myself.

A 1000, especially a 695B, would have been nowhere near gross for this trip, and could probably have tankered enough fuel to easily do the trip without buying any in Hamilton. I need to buy a little bit, and probably would do so anyway just as a matter of courtesy.

[Adam Frisch]

Commanders smoke King Air's in just about everything except cabin space.

[donv]

That was certainly true back in the day. They've finally, over 30 years, evolved the King Air to the point where it's competitive with the Commanders. The 350 really does fill a niche that nothing else can do, taking 8-9 pax into short runways.

Why anyone buys a new 90, however, is beyond me...

[donv]

By the way, Hamilton is such a beautiful area. It's down in the Bitterroot valley, with the Bitterroot river running down through it. It's in a rain shadow, so the valley gets hardly any rain, while you can see the rain up in the mountains to the west.

The ASOS at Hamilton was out of service, which was okay for me (weather was beautiful going in, and reasonable going out) but caused the King Air guys an issue when they came back to pick up the other half of the party. Without weather reporting, they were unwilling to come into Hamilton and made them drive to Missoula. The downside of fractional ownership!

[Steve binnette]

Just another reason there is nothing like flying your own plane!!!  There is no reason not to take a look at the weather.

  I have never even heard of this place it looks beautiful.

I agree the king air 350 is a good ride if you need the room, but why buy any other king air? Who knows.

[donv]

I should add that, having ridden in the back of both 200 and 90 King Airs, I prefer the Commander cabins to the King Airs. I think the Commander layout is just more pleasant.

[SKYFLYER]

As are all things COMMANDER