Cessna 340

[Baronpilot244]

I fly ours at FL180 and have been to FL200 but it takes a long time to get there and frankly unless you are going to take advantage of good tailwinds it isn't really worth it. I hang out in the 16k - 17k range.
Its noisy and cramped and doesn't give a good ride in the bumps. Watch out for the rear pax sliding their seats all the way aft - this really affects CG and can give you a nasty surprise on takeoff.
The fuel system is a real pain. The limitation on take-off weights over 5990 means you have to fill the tips. So now you have precious little in the aux tanks and the thing gallops through fuel in the climb.
Stage cooling means a lot of forward planning - hopefully speed brakes are fitted to the airplane in question, it really helps when trying to get the thing down in a hurry without pulling power back.
I fly a King Air C90B every day and its soooooo much easier. The 340 is a handful for anyone and the range is just limited.

If they pull the trigger make sure they get a very good prebuy done by someone that knows these aircraft - particularly the landing gear. We've been lucky with ours, only ever had one problem that ended up in a manual extension.
In all honesty its a good owner pilot airplane for a two couples or a family, but as a corporate machine it falls a bit short.

Bp244

 

[mogley68]

I have about 200 in same plane with the conversions.

50 gallons first hour and 42 every hour after.
Up high (18-22k) = 210-218 true all day long.
Never had a problem getting 700-1000 fpm all the way up.
Fuel system is ridiculous especially with just one wing locker tank and holy f'n fuel pumps.
Do not trust the ram book for takeoff values.

 

[Fly_Unity]

Not sure why everyone complains about the fuel system... Been flying for Twin Cessna's for years and its easy as cake. Main Tanks first hour, Aux until their dry, then back on Main Tanks to land on. Is it that hard to turn the fuel knob only two times per flight?

 

[KDoersom]

Not sure why everyone complains about the fuel system... Been flying for Twin Cessna's for years and its easy as cake. Main Tanks first hour, Aux until their dry, then back on Main Tanks to land on. Is it that hard to turn the fuel knob only two times per flight?

That was it is pretty easy. It's when you add that one nacelle tank in it becomes a pain on the but. And return fuel from the aux goes to the mains so there best be room for it

 

[jhugz]

I flew a 402 for the first time in two years a week ago, ran both of the aux's dry and the same time, that got sporty real quick.

 

[NickH]

King Air 12345, turn right ten degrees, piston twin is overtaking you by 40 knots.
But hey, King air's are the slowtations of the t-prop world.

I am shamed..

 

[z987k]

I am shamed..

Me too. I regularly get ran over by conquests.

 

[Dan208B]

I've done some teaching in these airplanes. I personally like them a lot for what they are. If you're trying to compare it, it's just no good haha. My only suggestion is what BaronPilot said, planning is key for stage cooling. Everyone has different thoughts on this, but as an aircraft owner, I would tell you that stage cooling is CRITICAL. If you arrive on a 3 mile final or the downwind (or even FAF) and you aren't fully cooled, it would be better to delay and fly around for a couple minutes than to pull the power to slow down and land. The landing lights will assist slightly in slowing, but be sure to observe the speeds for them. Also try not to throw out the gear and flaps (particularly gear) right at the max speeds because they are both electric and will eventually wear out. After landing in this airplane, prolonging the life of the turbos is also a big ticket item. 3 minutes is absolute minimum cooldown (1000 rpm is a good number), and 5 minutes is even better. I think you'll really enjoy the 340, especially with the RAM conversion. It's literally almost a 2 person airplane with the stock engines, but the RAM helps a good deal. If you fly the airplane the way it was intended to be used, I think you'll get what you want out of it. Don't try going up super high with it, I would recommend below 20,000 unless you really need higher for something, and definitely don't try to top a storm with it, best to go around at that point. Have fun!