Super King Air 350
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Flight Engineer
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 75; Flight Crew Total 8000; Flight Crew Type 250
Confusion; Human-Machine Interface; Time Pressure; Training / Qualification
Deviation - Track / Heading All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented; Flight Crew Returned To Clearance
Aircraft; Procedure; Human Factors
We received holding instructions to hold on the RBV 249 radial; 5 mile legs; right hand turns.  The quadrant was not provided.  Holding instructions were provided approximately 30-45 seconds prior to crossing the holding fix which we were approaching from a direct to clearance (not on an airway).  As PIC and non pilot flying in right seat I attempted to tune and identify RBV and set the course on the HSI.  I did not immediately receive a good signal from RBV.  I also attempted to input the hold into the FMS and made an error while doing so.  I do not fly the King Air 350 regularly and have not attempted to enter a hold since recurrent training nearly 10 months ago.  I was slower than normal entering the holding pattern and when inputting the information to the box and in doing so I mistakenly inputted 249 degrees for the inbound course rather than the holding course.  (The angle from my seat being a taller person and the sun shining directly on the FMS head helped me in hitting the incorrect Line Select Key).  This resulted in an incorrect holding pattern.  We were at the fix when executing and the flying pilot activated LNAV and we entered the holding pattern incorrectly.  After the entry phase I felt we were in the wrong spot and confirmed visually with the radial now active on my HSI.  At the nearly the same point; ATC questioned our position and I replied that we were turning inbound on the 249 degree radial which is when I saw what I inputted on the holding page of the FMS.  I stated 249 degree inbound because that is what was in the box and a passive way to let ATC know we were in the wrong spot.  He did not respond and I keyed the mike to advise vectors were needed and stepped on the controller and released to hear.  It was the controller advising we could exit the hold and he provided a vector; climb and frequency change to a new sector.  We proceeded with vectors for flow control and proceeded to destination without incident.  I feel late holding instructions; error in inputting instruction into FMS; unfamiliarity or lack of recent experience in the aicraft; poor CRM with flying pilot to confirm before executing an FMS update to catch the error more timely as a contributing factors to this event.  I have recently reviewed systems with more current personnel not the aircraft.  I regularly fly a [different aircraft] with a different type of FMS.
BE350 Captain reports a botched holding pattern due to the clearance being issued very close to the fix and entering the holding radial into the FMC instead of the holding course.