CenTex Aerospace has received FAA approval of a 14,000 pound maximum takeoff weight for Beechcraft King Air 200, A200, B200 AND B200GT series airplanes with high flotation landing gear. This whopping 1,500 pound increase in the maximum takeoff weight is called the Halo 275 conversion, which was approved for the King Air 250 series aircraft last year. It includes a 1,000 pound increase in the maximum landing weight, and, for year model 1993 and after, a 500 pound increase in the maximum zero fuel weight.
Like its popular sibling the Halo 250, five new safety systems are added as a result of certification in Commuter category. An engine fire extinguisher, elevator trim warning, over-speed warning, emergency cabin lighting, and an ice mode for the stall warning add functionality that makes the airplane safer to fly. The addition of these new safety systems only increases the empty weight 80 pounds. The net payload increase can be equated to eight 170 pound passengers with 60 pounds left over for baggage or, of course, an additional 1,420 pounds of cargo or fuel.
According to CenTex, a fully fueled King Air 200 with the Halo 275 conversion can accommodate a pilot plus nine passengers with baggage. In other words, a Halo 275 equipped King Air 200 has a range of 1,900 nautical miles (zero wind + 45 minute reserve) while carrying a pilot and nine passengers. To fly this far in a standard King Air 200 you would have to leave behind eight of the nine passengers.
CenTex founder and president, Greg Barnes, had this to say about the Halo 275, “The King Air 200 with the stronger and smoother running, high flotation landing gear is a great value. These airplanes have served in select military fleets for many, many years as an economical special mission platform. With the Halo 275 conversion, the airplane’s inherent payload capability is unlocked for all operators, which greatly increases the versatility and value of their HFG equipped King Air 200s.”