King originated as an affordable manufacturer of high quality avionics and radios, primarily targeting non-commercial aircraft such as Piper, Beechcraft, and Cessna. They eventually merged with Allied, and then with Bendix and became Bendix/King. Bendix/King was eventually integrated into Honeywell. You may find these radios referenced as Bendix, King, Honeywell, or any combination of the 3. Bendix/King radios were often very reliable despite being more affordable compared to other avionics manufacturers.
KN-53 VOR/LOC Navigation Receiver
The KN-53 is used to receive navigation radio signals (VOR/LOC) and does not have any transmission capabilities. It displays the frequencies using a VFD (vacuum fluorescent display) and has a button to toggle between active and standby frequencies. Rotary encoders are used to adjust the frequencies in a coarse/fine manner and there is another knob for power/volume adjustment. The KN-53 uses an EAROM (electrically-alterable read only memory) to retain the active and standby frequencies even when power is removed.
KY-197 VHF Communications Transceiver
The KY-197 is a VHF communications radio capable of both receiving and transmitting on a wide range of frequencies. Like the KN-53, it displays the frequencies using a VFD and has a button to toggle between active and standby frequencies. Rotary encoders are used to adjust the frequencies in a coarse/fine manner and there is another knob for power/volume adjustment. The KN-53 uses an EAROM (electrically-alterable read only memory) to retain the active and standby frequencies even when power is removed.
Visit the link below for a list of King avionics manuals!