Bryan Wood is the previous owner of a 1978 Cessna T210M with inadvertent TKS Ice Protection. He flew the airplane around the Midwest for 13 years.
How did you get started in aviation?
My dad flew in the Air Force. We had planes growing up. Sometimes it was an old taildragger, other times a four place family plane. I bought my first plane in my early 20’s, a little two place Grumman. In college I started taking lessons when I had the money, and as soon as I got out of college I got my license. My whole adult life I have had some type of plane. I love aviation. I love flying. And I love helping others to fly too.
Why did you choose TKS?
When I was looking at buying a Cessna T210, I talked to a guy that flew checks in a Turbo 210 back when banks flew canceled checks. Twice a day he would fly Kansas City – St. Louis – Des Moines. One night he barely made it into the Kansas City downtown airport (KMKC). He landed on a runway that was closed, coming in at full power in a Turbo Cessna 210 that had hot prop, hot plate and boots. His airplane picked up so much ice, he couldn’t shed it. So he put TKS on his plane and that completely eliminated his ice issues altogether. That’s what sold me on the TKS. I bought the 210 because I could put the TKS on it.
What did TKS do for your mission?
TKS gave me the freedom to go when I needed to. I used the airplane a lot, strictly for business—going to trade shows, sales meetings and bid openings. You’re up there in higher altitudes with the T210. Even in April and May at 10,000 feet you’re in freezing temperatures a lot of the time. From fall through spring, it seems like you’re always running into an occasion to turn the TKS on. If you’re flying IFR at all, it’s good insurance to have.
I’ve trusted my life to TKS so many times and have full confidence in the TKS system. It takes a big stress off your mind while you’re flying. When you start picking up ice like I did in my Aztec with boots, you wonder how much ice is going to shed the next time you cycle the boots. TKS lightens your whole mental load.
How does TKS compare with other ice protection systems?
Hands down they’re almost incomparable in runback situations. A lot of times with boots, you cycle them and maybe shed half the ice or three-fourths of the ice. If runback ice is forming, you can turn the ice light on and see ice building up behind the boots on top of the wing. I’ve been in some pretty significant icing situations with the TKS, and the only ice I had when I landed was on unprotected surfaces. It completely keeps the ice from forming and helps prevent runback ice that builds up behind boots.
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