ACR MLG CARGO FLT DEPART BWG VFR PICK UP IFR IN THE AIR. CLRNC DIRECT SHB DIRECT IND CLB TO CRUISE ALT. CAPT TUNED IN SYI; TN; IN ERROR. CTLR QUESTIONED 180 DEG HDG AND ADVISED TO TURN TO 360 DEGS AND PROCEED TO SHB; IN.

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WE DEPARTED BOWLING GREEN VFR TO PICK UP OUR CLRNC IN THE AIR. AFTER RAISING THE FLAPS I REDUCED PWR TO QUIET EPR AND BEGAN A SLOW CLBING TURN TO STAY IN THE VICINITY OF THE ARPT UNTIL RECEIVING THE CLRNC. WE RECEIVED OUR CLRNC TO PROCEED DIRECT SHELBYVILLE; DIRECT IND AND CLB TO CRUISE ALT. THE PLT FLYING CAPT PICKED UP THE CHART AND PUT SHELBYVILLE; TN; INSTEAD OF SHELBYVILLE; IN; IN THE GPS AND GAVE ME A HDG OF 180 DEGS. I WAS TURNING THROUGH 180 DEGS SO I ROLLED OUT AND BEGAN TO CLB TO CRUISE ALT. WE TOLD CTR WE WERE HDG 180 DEGS; GOING DIRECT TO SHELBYVILLE AND CLBING TO CRUISE ALT. OUT OF APPROX 13000 FT CTR CALLED AND ASKED OUR HEADING. HE ASKED IF WE WERE PROCEEDING DIRECT TO SHELBYVILLE; TN; AND WE TOLD HIM YES. HE GAVE US A HDG OF 360 DEGS AND TOLD US TO PROCEED DIRECT SHELBYVILLE; IN; DIRECT IND AND MAINTAIN CRUISE ALT. THERE WERE SEVERAL FACTORS WHICH I FEEL WERE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS TO THIS ERROR. 1ST; WE DECIDED TO TKOF VFR AND PICK UP OUR CLRNC IN THE AIR. 2ND; WAS NOT VERIFYING RTE WITH CTR. 3RD; CHOOSING TO STAY IN THE AREA OF THE ARPT INSTEAD OF PROCEEDING DIRECT TO IND AND CALLING CTR ON THAT RTE. WE WERE BOTH QUESTIONING OUR HEADING AND WERE RECHKING THE CHARTS WHEN CTR CALLED AND QUESTIONED US. THIS ALL TOOK PLACE IN LESS THAN 90 SECONDS AND THE PLT FLYING WAS TRYING TO SET THE GPS AND DO CHKLISTS. HAD WE SIMPLY ASKED CTR FOR AN INITIAL HEADING AND THE 3 LETTER NAME FOR SHELBYVILLE; IN; THE SIT WOULD NOT HAVE OCCURRED.