UW’s King Air Receives FAA Certification Approval of Instrument Modifications Made by Avcon

The National Science Foundation (NSF)-University of Wyoming King Air Research Aircraft took a key step in readying itself for its first mission when Avcon Industries Inc. received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) supplemental type certification (STC) approval of the structural and electrical aircraft modifications made by Avcon.

Avcon -- a subsidiary of Butler National Corp., a leading manufacturer and systems integrator for special mission aircraft modifications -- outfitted the King Air model B300 airplane with a complex integration of structural and electrical modifications that will allow flexibility in mounting instruments relevant to specific research campaigns.

Avcon received STC approval from the FAA for the installation of the Avcon King Air Nose Extension with sensor mounting provisions; wing tip or outboard hard points -- also referred to as provisions for external stores, with significant sensor shapes; dual downward and dual upward camera ports; lower fuselage hardpoints with pylons for large external sensors; side-fuselage hardpoints for sensors; and upper fuselage hardpoints for sensors on the King Air, according to an Avcon press release.

The Avcon FAA STC allows for various combinations of sensor deployment. The STC expands the options of Avcon Industries’ products available for installation. The generic shapes mounted to the various hard points during flight testing gives Avcon customers the opportunity to adapt Avcon products to specific mission requirements. 

“First, congratulations to the University of Wyoming and the National Science Foundation for their commitment to research and in appreciation for selecting Avcon to work the special mission airplane project,” says Marcus Abendroth, president of Avcon Industries Inc. “Avcon accepted the University of Wyoming Next Generation King Air research airplane project as a significant challenge. The modifications sought were integrated, complex and had multiple configurations. Approximately five years after starting the project, Avcon achieved the FAA STC.”

“From a business perspective, Avcon made a significant engineering commitment to the University of Wyoming King Air project,” adds Chris Reedy, president and CEO of Avcon’s parent company, Butler National Corp. “We believe our investment will yield a foundation of engineering for new product sales and development opportunities in the future.”

“We appreciate the relationship and commitment of the Avcon team to the University of Wyoming in integration and certification of our King Air research airplane,” says Jeff French, a professor and head of the UW Department of Atmospheric Science. “The scale of this project was huge, and this aircraft is unique amongst atmospheric research aircraft.

 “The University of Wyoming and its partners are committed to innovative environmental research,” French continues. “The NSF UW Research King Air is an essential platform to continue and expand the university’s research mission and to serve national research needs. The special mission-modified King Air brings tremendous flexibility and adaptability with the multitude of configurations made available with the FAA-certified airplane.”

French says the first NSF-sponsored flight campaign, which will take place in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been postponed to summer 2026. The Salt Lake City Summer Ozone Study will be led by Emily Fischer, a professor of atmospheric research at Colorado State University, and will investigate the formation of ozone over the Salt Lake Valley during summer. Scientists from the University of Utah, the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Montana also will be involved.

“During late summer, fall and winter of 2025 and into 2026, we will be installing and test flying instruments that are part of the King Air Research Facility,” French explains. “Most of those flights will be local -- based out of the Laramie airport -- and will provide us an opportunity to test fly new instruments that were acquired and/or developed as part of the same grant that funded the new aircraft development.”