N615KE

Thank you for your interest in learning more about our Turbo Cessna 206 N615KE!

Below are some hints I have learned to make flying the Cessna 206 more safe and pleasurable.  

The Cargo Door

One of great features of the Cessna 206 is the giant rear cargo door.  But there are a couple of key things to know, especially about how the doors open when the flaps are down.

1. It is critical to show passengers how to use the red latch system inside the back door.  Especially when the flaps are down.  It is strongly suggested that you actually encourage the passengers to use the inner latch and emulate how they would egress the airplane when the flaps are down. 

2. I would suggest taking the cover off, doing the oil check, fuel check and clean the windshield before doing the electrical check so that you can lower the flaps without having to raise them again before starting the engine.  If carrying passengers in the rear you will probably still need to raise the flaps again, but this is a good time to demonstrate the latch mechanism

The Tip Tanks

For me, the best feature of the tip tanks has been the increased take off weight.  But it is nice to 'refuel while in the air'.  I have not taken a flight long enough to 'need' them for fuel, as my bladder just won't make it that long. 

As of this writing I continue to have issues with the tip tank gauges, making it more difficult to gauge how full they are without getting a tall ladder to look in the tanks.  The filler is most easily reached by putting the ladder just past the wing tip slightly back.  I am working with maintenance to find a solution to the tip gauge challenges.  Until the gauges are fixed please do not plan your trip using the tip tanks for fuel.

The tip tank pumps (lower center console) seem to move about 1/2 gallon each side per minute to the main tanks, for a total of about 1 gallon a minute.  

If you choose to use these tanks for fuel please consider the following:

1. Do not let the pumps run dry.  I generally set an alarm on my watch or iPad for 1 minute for each gallon I want to transfer.

2. To keep the plane balanced, run both pumps at the same time.

3. Try to leave a couple gallons in each tank so they are not left completely dry.  I also try to not keep them full, so that they don't impact W&B too much.

4. Obviously remember to calculate the fuel in the tip tanks in your Weight & Balance.

5. Don't forget to include the two sumps for these tanks in your pre-flight.

Engine Management & Temperature

It is critical that all pilots flying a Cessna 206 be vigilant on engine temperature management.  Even on relatively cool days the engine can still get very hot.  Please keep the CHT at or below 380 degrees.

Pilots should reduce the throttle to 30MP/2400RPM as soon as they are at a safe altitude and can begin a normal climb.  While the POH shows 20gph for the normal climb, my experience is that the engine will overheat at this setting, especially on warmer days.  I generally find that 22 gph will keep things cooler - keep an eye on this and adjust to keep CHT below 380.

Once in cruse, pilots will constantly need to monitor the CHT.  It will be much harder to maintain a CHT under 380 at high power settings.

To maintain lower CHT's try the following:

1. Open Cowl flaps if not already open

2. Add more fuel

3. Reduce climb rate/angle 

4. Reduce power setting (reduce MP or RPM) 

Weight & Balance

The 206 is known for being a load hauler, but like any aircraft it can be out of weight and balance.

In my experience I have noticed two surprises.

1) Only having two larger adults in the front can make the plane nose heavy.

2) Enough load in the back can make the aircraft tail heavy.

Obviously do your W&B!

KAP 140 Autopilot

The KAP 140 Autopilot works great most of the time, but may be a bit underpowered in certain situations.

Pilots will want add and retract flaps slowly when the Autopilot is active, otherwise you will get a 'Trim in motion' alarm.  I generally try to add the flaps in 1/2 increments (5 degrees, 10 degrees,  etc.)

On one approach I added the flaps and the autopilot began to screech very loudly and the electric trim stopped operating.  I found it necessary to pull the circuit breaker and fly manually from that point on.  Resetting the circuit breaker after I landed resolved the issue and I have not experienced any issues sense.

I have not experienced any issues, but I do monitor the autopilot much more diligently in turbulence.