Page 22 - October21T_REV

Is It Ready Yet?
A Cessna 340’s Panel Overhaul by John W. Tucker & Brian Ford
During
Every now and then, the stars align between op- portunity, a capable roster of participants, more than a sprinkling of creativity, and an unshakable perseverance to make a project truly unique and
wonderful. This is one of those alignments, and while not the typical aircraft one might see in ACI Jet’s business jet repair station, it rests high on the list of memorable proj- ects nonetheless.
The aircraft subject is a 1977 Cessna 340A, a pressurized twin-piston aircraft first introduced in 1971. A true “cabin- class” aircraft capable of what remains impressive speed and range. The Cessna 340 quickly secured its spot as one of the most sought after GA aircraft of the 20th Century. Now, in 2021, not much has changed, although an investment in modernized avionics, some aftermarket modifications and a fresh interior might be in store for many of them.
Once featured in Twin Cessna Flyer Magazine (April 2013), this Cessna 340A (N222RD, serial number 366) spent much of its life as a commuter aircraft for a doctor in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Ear, Nose and Throat doctor, Adam Shapiro, used the aircraft to shuttle between offices and to fly his family around the Caribbean Islands. In 2015, the aircraft would serve a very familiar role, shuttling its new owner between office locations and acting as a family “station wagon” when acquired by William “Bill” Borgsmiller, founder and Chief Executive Officer of California-based business
20 • TWIN & TURBINE / October 2021
After
jet maintenance, FBO and charter provider ACI Jet. Bill, an avid aviator with more than 6,000 hours of flight time with 2,000 hours in piston aircraft, flies his Cessna 340A regularly and is a vocal supporter of investing in light general aviation. The aircraft was an upgrade from his 1970 Cessna 310.
As ACI Jet has operations and business interests in locations including Southern California and along the Central Coast of California in San Luis Obispo County, seamless and timely connections between them are criti- cal. Bill’s C340 hits the airways weekly, sometimes multiple times per week, and takes him and others where they need to be quickly and safely. Bill jokes that with as many trips as he’s done between the company’s headquarters and home in San Luis Obispo and its largest FBO at John Wayne Air- port, Orange County, California, “the aircraft can almost fly itself down to Orange County now.”
Above all, the aircraft faithfully carries Bill and his family to his hometown in Northern California and beyond – often just to get out and go flying.
The reality is that with proper care and maintenance, airframes can essentially last forever. Bill realized that with a substantially upgraded panel, he would gain the added safety, navigational resources, and engine perfor- mance information a newer airframe could offer but with an aircraft that has already been serving him well. He’d