Exhibition of the METS Nets Some Quick Sales of Mission-Ready King Airs

Textron must have seen some success thanks to their nice little King Air 260 display model at the Farnborough International Airshow, since they capped off their exhibition there with a sale for 3 cargo craft to the Scottish Ambulance Service.

It's a little fortuitous how Textron showed up to Farnborough with a new Special Mission King Air in tow, hoping to drum up awareness of the type's wide mission capabilities. The order will see the delivery of 3 cargo door Beechcraft King Air 360Cs some time next year, helping to support the buyer, Gama Aviation UK Limited, in their mission to support the Scottish Ambulance Service. The SAS provides airborne medevac to the mainland and its outlying islands, making the King Air a pretty natural choice for its combination of dirt-field capability, multi-engine turboprop redundancy, and reliable dispatch rate.

Gama Aviation has been a provider for the SAS for more than 3 decades thanks to their fleet of King Airs, providing the flight crew and aircraft while fitting out the cabin with SAS medical staff. Funny enough, Gama was recently given the SAS contract around the same time as the sale, set to start in 2026. Their purchase was heralded as a fleet revamp, with the new King Air 360s and a pair of Airbus H145 D3s on the way.

“Our team worked closely with the experts at Textron Aviation to spec the Beechcraft King Air 360Cs for our recently awarded contract in Scotland,” said Marwan Khalek, Group CEO, Gama Aviation. “Strategically the KA360C hits the mark, providing good, direct operating costs and flight performance with a highly scalable mission platform we will modify at Gama Aviation. The completed aircraft, on entry into service, will represent a substantial step-up in the provision of pre- and intra-hospital care for the people of Scotland.

“By providing a wide range of essential healthcare services to regional, rural and remote communities, the mission scope of the Scottish Air Ambulance requires 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operational availability,” said Bob Gibbs, vice president, Special Mission Sales, Textron Aviation. “Continuing to be the supplier of choice for emergency services in Scotland is a testament to the King Air’s performance when each second matters.”

FMI: www.txtav.com