tubo commander 690

[ditchpilot]

Looking at 690's and would like to talk with some 690 drivers with experience flying and maintaining these old planes.

 

[pilotyip]

Liked It

The TC-690 is a great pilot's airplane, responsive, nice power with the fixed shaft engines, good economy and speed compared to a King Air. I preferred flying it to the King Air. Always had a lot of little deferrable things pooping up. You needed a good A&P who worked on AC's. It is noisy, although the one I flew had Q tips props which cut the noise down, we also had a Freon AC system, which when flying done south was sweet. If you have not been told already, learning to taxi the airplane can be an interesting experience. You do the TC soft shoe shuffle. If I win the lotto I would buy one.

 

[G100driver]

The turbo commander was a great airplane in the 70's and 80's. It is well past its prime. Parts are a pain and the airplane is flying AD.

Weird to taxi (never understood why Rockwell decided to be weird) but very nice to fly. Handles well once you get it off the ground.

My advice, get a King Air. They are still in production and pax are much more accepting of the airframe. Also the wings and tails do not fall off King Air's often!

 

[G100driver]

If I win the lotto I would buy a King Air for myself and Turbo Commander for my mother-in-law!

 

[pilotyip]

TC for KA

If I win the lotto I would buy a King Air for myself and Turbo Commander for my mother-in-law!

In has been over 10 years ago and 3 jobs, but they got rid of the TC for a KA200, and six months later got out of the flying business because the KA was much more expensive to operate. But you are right the pax really liked it compared to the TC. BTW you are on the money about parts and AD's, but I had heard the -10 conversions were better and had fixed those things.

 

[G100driver]

I was refering to the wing and tail AD's which were "corrected" on the -10 Renaissance Commander. AKA old airframe fixed up with new paint job but still has a ton of gremlin's because the wiring was not quite put together right. (not too many renaissance's out there because they were done by second rate shop's)

The -10 converstions did make for a really nice flying airplane. It turned the 690 into an short winged 980. What you end up with an airplane that has a lot of climb performance, but crappy presurization that does not allow you to fly above FL250 because you exceed a 10,000 foot cabin.

 

[Tgaug6300]

The 690 was the BEST Turbo Prop I ever flew! Have over 3K hours in them, and loved every bit! With the -10s we got 290kts, and burned about 260lbs a side. Taxiing was fine once you got used to it. I recommend the Servicenter in Betheny Oklahoma! Great group of people and they know thier stuff.
The only bad thing I can say about the airplane (690 series), is the fuel system. Bladders took FOREVER to fill. Everything feeds into a center tank. It was like burping a water bed.

 

[treetop flyer]

If the Commader is where you're headed, I'd bypass the 690's and look for a quality 840. It's a good performer, and Rockwell/Gulfstream fixed a lot of the nagging issues the 690's had. If the budget allows, proceed to the 900/1000 stable. With proper maint. and a bit of patience, the Commander's can be great business aircraft.

If looking turns to buying, send me a PM. I know of a high quality (very well maintained) 840 that may come up for sale soon (an A/C I used to fly at my last job).

Treetop

 

[NW Flyer]

Never met a 690 pilot that didn't love flying the airplane, myself included. A great workhorse of an airplane that performs excellent and is an absolute pleasure to fly.

Make sure you have a GOOD mechanic with lots of 690 experience close by... Also, make sure your prebuy is done by someone with lots of 690 experience too, and the airplane is test flown by a knowledgable 690 pilot before buying. I have flown more than a dozen different airframes, and they all were very different. A misrigged 690 is a lot less fun than you would think...

 

[G100driver]

Never met a 690 pilot that didn't love flying the airplane, myself included. A great workhorse of an airplane that performs excellent and is an absolute pleasure to fly.

Make sure you have a GOOD mechanic with lots of 690 experience close by... Also, make sure your prebuy is done by someone with lots of 690 experience too, and the airplane is test flown by a knowledgable 690 pilot before buying. I have flown more than a dozen different airframes, and they all were very different. A misrigged 690 is a lot less fun than you would think...

Given what the last two posters have said about the MX end of a Turbo-Commander and about its rigging abnormalities (very common) I would look real hard at a King Air.

The airplane is not about you, but about keeping your boss happy. Nothing worse than constantly having a broken airplane. Not to mention that it is a flying AD and at times can be difficult to get parts.

Do yourself a favor, recommend a good King Air or Cheyenne III. At least go with a manufacturer that is still is business.

The turbo commander was a great airplane in it day. That day has past, no need to live in it.