Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support (GCS) has partnered with KPAK and AC Systems to offer its automatic cabin climate control system for the Beechcraft Bonanza.
GCS will offer CabinComfortPlus as an aftermarket installation at its factory-owned Hawker Beechcraft Services locations. Customers who order the system during the AirVenture will receive introductory pricing, company officials said.
“CabinComfortPlus brings automotive-style cabin climate control to our piston product line,” said Christi Tannahill, Hawker Beechcraft vice president, GCS.
CabinComfortPlus is a fully-automatic cabin climate control system that replaces the current Bonanza cooling system and provides a control panel to set cabin temperature zonally. The pilot and/or passengers set the temperature for their zone to the desired setting and the system automatically maintains that temperature, enabling set-and-forget comfort throughout the cabin, according to company officials. The system is certified for all phases of flight, including takeoff and landing without the need to be turned off during startup or shutdown.
More than 40 pounds lighter than the current factory air conditioning system, CabinComfortPlus does not require ducts or scoops in the airflow, providing conditioned air without loss of speed due to drag, company officials said. The system automatically switches between heating and cooling to maintain the desired set temperature lowering pilot workload and increasing safety, officials add. During low aircraft voltage or engine starting, the system automatically shuts off. In warm weather, the blower starts as soon as the master switch is turned on to begin ventilating the cabin. Once the engine starts, the air will be cooled to the set temperature.
On-board diagnostics provide fault codes to service personnel and there is no scheduled maintenance beyond visual assessments during annual aircraft inspections, according to company officials.
