Aircraft model
ROCKWELL INTERNATIONAL 690B
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Turbo Commander 690B is the developed version of Rockwell's pressurised high-wing twin turboprop: two Garrett TPE331 engines, 290 knots, a 31,000-foot ceiling and a cabin with the visibility that the high wing and over-wing engines give. It is faster than a King Air C90 or E90 and carries a similar load.
The Garrett engine is the thing to understand: a single-shaft design running at constant speed with the propeller geared directly to it, so it sounds and starts differently from a PT6 and is less tolerant of mishandling, but it is efficient with a long overhaul interval. Shops that know Garretts are fewer than those that know PT6s. Support for the airframe runs through specialists since the type passed out of production. Below 12,500 lb no type rating is required.
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- ROCKWELL INTERNATIONAL 690B
What it is
| Seats | 11 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 2 |
| Engine | Garrett TPE331-5-251K |
| Horsepower | 717 hp |
| Fuel | JetA |
| Certification basis | FAR23 |
| Production start | 1976 |
| Production end | 1979 |
| Endorsements required | complex;high-performance;multi-engine;pressurized/high-altitude |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 290 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 1,300 nm |
| Service ceiling | 31,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 2,700 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 78 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 2,200 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 2,100 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 11 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 4,050 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 868 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 10,250 lb |
| Empty weight | 6,200 lb |
| Usable fuel | 475 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 95 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $410,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $825,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 5,400 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $300,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $450,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 193 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 59 |
| Median year built | 1978.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 3 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 2 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 50.85 · thin base (low)1 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 16.95 · thin base (low)2 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 25 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 42.37 · thin base (low)3 |
| Airworthiness directives | 14 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | low |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 59 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 59 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 59 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing multi-engine, turbo-prop, 2 engines, 7+ seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | 10 of 103 |
| Support | 5.9 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 10 of 105 |
- Accident record: class median 12.71 · 22 models in class.
- Severity: class median 29.17.
- Access: class median 7,501.5.
- Support: class median 51.
- Liquidity: class median 24.79.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories.