Owners of pre-NG Pilatus PC-12s hankering to upgrade their airplane’s original P&W PT-6 engine, can now add a Hartzell five-blade composite swept-tip propeller when the work is completed by Broomfield, Colorado-based Finnoff Aviation.
The upgraded prop, now standard on new PC-12s, is 5 pounds lighter than the original aluminum four-blade Hartzell standard on nearly 800 early-generation PC-12s. The new Hartzell propeller is part of the powerplant upgrade that brings a pre-NG Pilatus up to 1,200 hp with the P&W 67P engine.
Hartzell’s propeller gives the 2016 PC-12 NG a 5-knot faster cruise, a 10 percent faster climb to 28,000 feet and a 50-foot shorter takeoff distance. The composite blades are certified for unlimited life. The new prop also reduces both flyover and cabin noise. Hartzell’s executive vice president JJ Frigge said more than 100 Pilatus PC-12 operators have opted for the upgrade in the first six months of availability.
The five-blade composite propeller lists for $83,640, less a $15,000 trade-in for the old prop.
