Hawker Beechcraft (HBC) announced the rebranding of its Premier light jet as the Hawker 200 and introduced the King Air 250, a replacement for the King Air 200GT, at the NBAA Convention. The company also announced an upgrade program for the Hawker 400XP that will include new engines.

The Premier/Hawker 200 re­-branding is one result of customer surveys and usage analysis Wichita-based HBC recently conducted.  

Enhancements for the re­­branded Hawker 200 will include Williams International FJ44-3AP engines, winglets, increased max takeoff weight and maximum altitude, multiscan wea­ther radar, ADS-B out, 400-hour inspection intervals and a 10-year warranty on the airframe, which features a composite fuselage and metal wings.

The Hawker 200 evolved from the Premier II program, according to HBC.

HBC is developing the Hawk­er 200 cabin configurations, which may include flexibility introduced last year on the King Air 350.

Scheduled to enter service in 2012, the Hawker 200 is priced at $7.55 million. The operating cost is estimated at $4.33 per mile.

Hawker 400XP Upgrade

The company also announced a high-performance retrofit up­grade for the Hawker 400XP, featuring winglets, new Williams ­International FJ44-4A-32 engines and optional avionics and system enhancements. The Williams engines replace the original Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-5Rs. Among the other performance improvements, the upgraded 400XP will be capable of climbing to FL370 at maximum weight in 12 minutes, seven minutes faster than the current 400XP.

HBC’s surveys revealed King Air customers’ preferences. “Most people are satisfied with speed, range and cabin comfort; the answer that came back was,
‘We want an airplane that can get us into and out of more airports,’” said Shawn Vick, executive vice president.

As a result, the focus of the King Air 250 was to boost its short-field and high-and-hot landing and takeoff capabilities. The aircraft incorporates three major changes over the King Air 200GT it replaces: new Hartzell composite propellers, composite winglets and a ram air recovery system to increase engine performance.
Hawker Beechcraft said the change answers the customer responses. At mtow at sea level on a standard day, the 250 will take off in 2,111 feet. At 5,000-foot elevation on a standard day, that distance is 3,094 feet (both over a 50-foot obstacle). These represent an improved short-field performance of more than 450 and 700 feet, respectively. The King Air 250 will be priced at $5.79 million.