Bonanza Install Part 1

25th April 2012

This installation overview will be published in multiple parts due to the size. Please check back frequently, or subscribe to the blog, for additional posts.

Arrival and initial inspection

Upon arrival at KSLN an aircraft will typically be met by a representative of CAV Aerospace and immediately pulled into the hangar.

The CAV Aerospace hangar in Salina, KS (KSLN) is located immediately north of the tower.

An inspection will be conducted to ensure the aircraft is compatible with the STC to be installed and that any deficiencies are noted for the safety of our installation personnel and pilots. After inspection the aircraft is opened up and the interior is removed to allow installation of internal components and routing of plumbing / electrical wiring through the cabin.

The arriving aircraft being inspected and opened.
The interior being removed to allow internal installation.

The aircraft’s flight surfaces are prepared for the installation. This includes marking and removing all access doors, marking and removing all stall strips and the removal of the “wedges”, the large vortex generators found on 1984 or newer 36 models.

A marked access hatch prior to removal.
Prepping the flight surface
Bonanzas are put on jacks allowing access to the wheel wells.
Stall strip placement is exactly marked and the stall strips removed. They will be replaced with porous titanium stall strips.
Stall strip placement is exactly marked and the stall strips removed. They will be replaced with porous titanium stall strips.

While the preparations are made on the flight surfaces another installation technician will be conducting the component installation in the right wheel well. Components installed in the wheel well include the TKS main pump, the windshield pump, a solenoid, a high pressure switch, a low pressure switch and a filter.

A view looking aft into the wheel well. From left to right are the main pump, the solenoid and the windshield pump.
A view of the wheel well looking outboard. The item on the left is the filter and the two items in the center are the high and low pressure switches.

The propeller is pulled to allow installation of the TKS slinger ring. The prop is moved to a dedicated room where the temperature and humidity is kept at optimal levels for the bonding agent’s cure requirements.

The prop being removed for slinger ring installation.

When an aircraft comes to us with a heated prop, as in the picture above, we remove the heated elements, contact ring and brush as these items occupy the exact same space required for the TKS slinger. The slinger ring not only keeps the prop blades protected from ice but has an added benefit of helping protect the rest of the airframe through fluid departing the blades.

Part 2 of the Bonanza TKS installation can be found here.

Learn More About TKS for the Beechcraft Bonanza