Beech Super King Air 350

Overview

The Super King Air 350 is the top-of-line cabin-class twin turboprop in Beechcraft’s King Air family, certified in 1989 and produced through 2015 before being rebranded as the King Air 350i and, eventually, the King Air 360. With two PT6A-60A engines flat-rated to 1,050 shp per side and a 35,000-foot service ceiling, the 350 is the variant that competes meaningfully with light jets on legs under 400 nautical miles, where its short-runway capability and full-payload-with-full-fuel economics outperform jet alternatives.

For the GA buyer, the 350 sits in a different operational tier from the 90/100/200 line. It is one of only two King Airs (alongside the earlier 300) that requires a type rating, certified under FAA Part 23 Commuter category because it exceeds 12,500 pounds gross weight. The mission set is corporate transport, government and ISR work, medevac, and high-utilization charter.

Key Features for GA Buyers

• Light-jet performance envelope. 312-knot maximum cruise, 35,000-ft service ceiling, and 1,806 nm range cover most domestic business missions without a fuel stop.
• Full-payload, full-fuel capability. 5,145 lb useful load lets operators top off and still carry eight passengers plus baggage, an economic argument no comparable light jet can match.
• Short-runway access. Backed by props rather than thrust reversers, the 350 routinely operates from 3,000-foot strips closed to most jets.
• Mission flexibility. Civilian VIP, medevac, military ISR, and cargo conversions all share the same airframe and parts logistics, supporting strong residual values.

Trade-offs

• Type rating required. The 350 (and the predecessor 300) cannot be flown on a multi-engine turboprop rating alone; budget for type rating training and recurrent currency.
• Fuel and acquisition costs. 95 GPH cruise burn and a $4-8M typical pre-owned price place the 350 above most owner-operator budgets; the operator is typically a corporate flight department or charter company.
• Cabin tighter than light jets. The 4.5-foot cabin width is narrower than a Citation M2 or Phenom 100, a trade-off for the structural and weight advantages of the King Air formula.
• Newer 360 supersedes the model. Pre-owned 350 buyers are competing with depreciation pressure from the active 360 production line, which adds Pro Line Fusion avionics and other upgrades.

See Also

• Beech 200 Super King Air – the 350’s predecessor and the volume King Air model. Compare
• King Air 250 – the 200-series sibling with winglets and updated engines. Compare
• Beech King Air 100 – the lighter, lower-flying entry-tier King Air. Compare
• Cessna Citation M2 – direct light-jet competitor on equivalent mission lengths. Compare
• Embraer Phenom 100 – another entry-light-jet competitor in the same operational segment. Compare