The Beechcraft Bonanza is an American general aviation aircraft introduced in 1947 by Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. The six-seater, single ...
Beechcraft Bonanza
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The
Beechcraft Bonanza is an American
general aviation aircraft introduced in 1947 by
Beech Aircraft Corporation of
Wichita, Kansas.
The six-seater, single-engined aircraft is still being produced by
Beechcraft and has been in continuous production longer than any other
airplane in history.
[3][4] More than 17,000 Bonanzas of all variants have been built,
[5][6] produced in both distinctive
V-tail and conventional tail configurations.
Design and development
A 1947 advertisement for the first Model 35 Bonanza
At the end of
World War II, two all-metal
light aircraft emerged, the Model 35 Bonanza and the
Cessna 195,
that represented very different approaches to the premium end of the
postwar civil-aviation market. With its high-wing, seven-cylinder
radial engine, fixed
tailwheel undercarriage,
and roll-down side windows, the Cessna 195 was little more than a
continuation of prewar technology; the 35 Bonanza, however, was more
like the fighters developed during the war, featuring an
easier-to-manage, horizontally opposed, six-cylinder engine, a
rakishly streamlined shape, retractable
tricycle undercarriage (although the nosewheel initially was not steerable, but castering)
[7] and low-wing configuration.
Designed by a team led by
Ralph Harmon,
the model 35 Bonanza was a relatively fast, low-wing monoplane at a
time when most light aircraft were still made of wood and fabric. The
Model 35 featured
retractable landing gear, and its signature
V-tail
(equipped with a combination elevator-rudder called a "ruddervator"),
which made it both efficient and the most distinctive private aircraft
in the sky. The prototype 35 Bonanza made its first flight on December
22, 1945, with the first production aircraft debuting as 1947 models.
[8] The first 30–40 Bonanzas produced had fabric-covered flaps and ailerons, after which, those surfaces were covered with
magnesium alloy sheet.
[9][10] The V-tail design gained a reputation as the "forked-tail doctor killer",
[11] due to crashes by overconfident amateur pilots with high-level skills outside aviation,
[12] fatal accidents, and inflight breakups.
[13] "Doctor killer" has sometimes been used to describe the conventional-tailed version, as well.
[14][15]
Three aircraft eventually comprised the Bonanza family:
- Model 35 Bonanza (1947–1982; V-tail)[9]
- Model 33 Debonair (1959–1995; later renamed Bonanza, a Model 35 with a conventional tail)[16]
- Model 36 Bonanza (1968–present; a stretched Model 33)
In 1982, the production of the V-tail Bonanza stopped
[17] but the conventional-tail Model 33 continued in production until 1995.
[6][18] Still built today is the Model 36 Bonanza, a longer-bodied, straight-tail variant of the original design,
[19] introduced in 1968.
[6][20]
All Bonanzas share an unusual feature: The yoke and rudder pedals are interconnected by a system of
bungee cords that assist in keeping the airplane in
coordinated flight
during turns. The bungee system allows the pilot to make coordinated
turns using the yoke alone, or with minimal rudder input, during cruise
flight. Increased right-rudder pressure is still required on takeoff to
overcome engine
torque and
P-factor. In the landing phase, the bungee system must be overridden by the pilot when making
crosswind landings, which require
cross-controlled
inputs to keep the nose of the airplane aligned with the runway
centerline without drifting left or right. This feature started with the
V-tail and persists on the current production model.
[citation needed]
The twin-engined variant of the Bonanza is called the
Baron, whereas the
Twin Bonanza is a different design not based on the original single-engined Bonanza fuselage.
In January 2012, the Australian
Civil Aviation Safety Authority issued an
airworthiness directive
grounding all Bonanzas, Twin Bonanzas, and Debonairs equipped with a
single pole-style yoke and that have forward elevator control cables
that are more than 15 years old until they could be inspected. The AD
was issued based on two aircraft found to have frayed cables, one of
which suffered a cable failure just prior to takeoff and resulting
concerns about the age of the cables in fleet aircraft of this age. At
the time of the grounding, some Bonanzas had reached 64 years in
service. Aircraft with frayed cables were grounded until the cables were
replaced and those that passed inspection were required to have their
cables replaced within 60 days regardless. The AD affected only
Australian aircraft and was not adopted by the airworthiness authority
responsible for the
type certificate, the US
Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA instead opted to issue a Special Airworthiness Information
Bulletin requesting that the elevator control cables be inspected during
the annual inspection.
[21][22][23]
QU-22 Pave Eagle
The
QU-22 was a Beech 36/A36 Bonanza modified during the
Vietnam War to be an electronic monitoring signal relay aircraft, developed under the project name "Pave Eagle" for the
United States Air Force. An
AiResearch turbocharged, reduction-geared Continental GTSIO-520-G engine was used to reduce its noise signature, much like the later
Army-Lockheed YO-3A.
[citation needed] These aircraft were intended to be used as unmanned drones to monitor seismic and acoustic sensors dropped along the
Ho Chi Minh Trail in
Laos
and report troop and supply movements. When the project was put into
operation in 1968, however, the drones were all flown by pilots of the
554th Reconnaissance Squadron
Detachment 1, call sign "Vampire". A separate operation "Compass Flag"
monitored the General Directorate of Rear Services along the Ho Chi Minh
Trail linking to the 6908th security squadron.
[24]
Six YQU-22A prototypes (modifications of the Beech 33 Debonair) were
combat-tested in 1968, and two were lost during operations, with a
civilian test pilot killed. Twenty-seven QU-22Bs were modified, 13 in
1969 and 14 in 1970, with six lost in combat. Two Air Force pilots were
killed in action. All of the losses were due to engine failures or
effects of turbulence.
[25]
A large cowl bump above the spinner was faired-in for an AC current
generator, and higher weight set of Baron wings and spars were used to
handle the 236-gallon fuel load.
[24]
-
1965 S35 V-tailed Bonanza
-
-
-
-
Variants
Model 33 Debonair/Bonanza
A 1987-built Bonanza F33A in 2016
- 35-33 Debonair
- (1959) An M35 Bonanza with conventional fin and tailplane, one 225 hp Continental IO-470-J,[26] 233 built
- 35-A33 Debonair
- (1961) Model 33 with rear side windows and improved interior trim, 154 built
- 35-B33 Debonair
- (1962-1964) A33 with contoured fin leading edge, N35 fuel tank modifications and P35 instrument panel, 426 built
- 35-C33 Debonair
- (1965-1967) B33 with teardrop rear side windows, enlarged fin fairing and improved seats, 305 built
- 35-C33A Debonair
- (1966-1967) C33 with a 285hp Continental IO-520-B engine and optional fifth seat, 179 built
- D33 Debonair
- One S35 modified as a military close-support prototype
- E33 Bonanza
- (1968-1969) C33 with improved Bonanza trim, 116 built
- E33A Bonanza
- (1968) E33 with a 285 hp Continental IO-520-B engine, 85 built
- E33B Bonanza
- E33 with strengthened airframe and certified for aerobatics
- E33C Bonanza
- (1968-1969) E33B with a 285 hp Continental IO-520-B engine, 25 built
- F33 Bonanza
- (1970) E33 with deeper rear side windows and minor improvements, 20 built
- F33A Bonanza
- (1970-1994) F33 with a 285 hp Continental IO-520-B engine, later aircraft have a longer S35/V35 cabin and extra seats, 821 built[18]
- F33C Bonanza
- (1970) F33A certified for aerobatics, 118 built
- G33 Bonanza
- (1972-1973) F33 with a 260hp Continental IO-470-N engine and V35B trim, 50 built
Model 35 Bonanza
- 35
(1947–1948), main production with 165 hp (123 kW) Continental E-185-1 engine, 1500 built
- A35
- (1949) Model 35 with higher takeoff weight, and minor internal changes, 701 built
- B35
- (1950) A35 with a 165hp Continental E-185-8 engine and other minor changes, 480 built
- C35
- (1951-1952) B35 with a 185hp Continental E-185-11 engine, metal
propeller, larger tail surfaces, and higher takeoff weight, approved for
the Lycoming GO-435-D1 engine,[27] 719 built
- D35
- (1953) C35 with increased takeoff weight and minor changes, 298 built, approved for the Lycoming GO-435-D1 engine[27]
- E35
- (1954) D35 with optional E-225-8 engine and minor changes, 301 built
- F35
- (1955) E35 with extra rear window each side, 392 built
- G35
- (1956) F35 with a Continental E-225-8 engine, 476 built
- H35
-
-
- (1957) G35 with a Continental O-470-G engine, strengthened structure and internal trim changes, 464 built
- J35
- (1958) H35 with a fuel injected Continental IO-470-C engine, optional autopilot, and improved instruments, 396 built
- K35
- (1959) J35 with fuel load increase, optional fifth seat and increased takeoff weight, 436 built
- M35
- (1960) K35 with cambered wingtips and minor changes, 400 built
- N35
- (1961) M35 with a 260 hp Continental IO-470-N engine, increased fuel
capacity, increased takeoff weight, and teardrop rear side windows, 280
built[28]
- 035
- (1961) Experimental version, an N35 fitted with laminar flow airfoil and redesigned landing gear, only one built
- P35
- (1962–1963) N35 with new instrument panel and improved seating, 467 built
- S35
- (1964–1965) P35 with a Continental IO-520-B engine, higher takeoff
weight, longer cabin interior, optional fifth and sixth seat, and new
rear window, 667 built[29]
- V35
- (1966–1967) S35 with higher takeoff weight, single-piece windshield, optional turbocharged TSIO-520-D engine (as V35-TC), 873 built[30]
- V35A
- (1968–1969) V35 with a streamlined windshield and minor changes, optional turbocharged TSIO-520-D engine (as V35A-TC), 470 built
- V35B
- (1970–1982) V35A with minor improvements to systems and trim,
optional turbocharged TSIO-520-D engine (as V35B-TC), 24-volt electrical
system (1978 and on), 873 built[31]
Model 36 Bonanza
Beechcraft A36 Bonanza modified with the Tradewind Turbine's turboprop conversion
- 36
- (1968–1969) E33A with a ten-inch fuselage stretch, four cabin
windows each side, starboard rear double doors and seats for six, one
285 hp Continental IO-520-B engine, 184 built
- A36
- (1970–2005) Model 36 with improved deluxe interior, a new fuel system, higher takeoff weight, from 1984 fitted with a Continental IO-550-BB engine and redesigned instrument panel and controls, 2128 built[20][32]
- A36TC
- (1979–1981) Model 36 with a three-bladed propeller and a 300 hp turbocharged Continental TSIO-520-UB engine, 280 built
- T36TC
- (1979) A36 fitted with T-tail and a 325 hp Continental TSIO-520 engine, one built
- B36TC
- (1982–2002) A36TC with longer span wing, increased range, redesigned
instrument panel and controls, higher takeoff weight, 116 built[33]
- G36
- (2006–present) – glass cockpit update of the A36 with the Garmin G1000 system[5][34]
QU-22
- YQU-22A (Model P.1079)
- USAF military designation for a prototype intelligence-gathering drone version of the Bonanza 36, six built
- YAU-22A (Model PD.249)
- Prototype low-cost close-support version using Bonanza A36 fuselage and Baron B55 wings, one built
- QU-22B
- Production drone model for the USAF operation Pave Eagle, 27 built,
modified with turbocharging, three-bladed propeller, and tip-tanks[35]
Modifications
- Allison Turbine Bonanza
- Allison, in conjunction with Soloy, certified a conversion of Beech A36 Bonanza aircraft to be powered by an Allison 250-B17C turboprop engine.[36]
- Continental Voyager Bonanza (A36)
- standard aircraft with a liquid-cooled Continental Motors TSIOL-550-B engine.[37][38]
- Propjet Bonanza (A36)
- standard aircraft modified by Tradewind Turbines with an Allison 250-B17F/2 turboprop engine (Original STC # 3523NM by Soloy).[39]
- TurbineAir Bonanza (B36TC)
- Modification by Rocket Engineering subsidiary West Pacific Air, LLC with a 500 hp Pratt & Whitney PT6A-21 turboprop engine and 124 U.S. gallons (470 L; 103 imp gal) fuel capacity.[40][41][42][43]
- Whirlwind System II Turbonormalized Bonanza (36, A36, G36)
- standard aircraft modified by Tornado Alley Turbo with a Tornado Alley Turbonormalizing (keeps power up to 20,000ft)[44] system and approved for a 4000 lb MTOW
- Whirlwind TCP Bonanza (A36TC or B36TC)
- standard aircraft modified by Tornado Alley Turbo with a TCM IO-550B engine and Tornado Alley Turbonormalizing system, this airframe is approved for a 4042 lb MTOW.
- Bay Super V
- A multiengine conversion of the C35 Bonanza
Model 40
The
Beechcraft Model 40A was an experimental twin-engined aircraft based on
the Bonanza. Only one prototype was built in 1948. It featured a unique
over/under arrangement of two 180-hp
Franklin
engines mounted on top of each other and driving a single propeller.
The plane had a different engine cowl from a standard Bonanza, and the
nose gear could not fully retract, but otherwise it greatly resembled
the production Bonanzas of the time.
Certification rules demanded a firewall be fitted between the two engines, however, thus stopping development.
[45] The status of the prototype is unknown.
Parastu
This is the standard F33 (1970) variant of the Bonanza which has been reverse engineered by Defense Industries Organization of
Iran and is being manufactured without a license.
[46][47]
Operators
Civil
Astronaut Gordon Cooper, of
Gemini V, poses on the wing of his personal Beechcraft Bonanza in 1963.
The Bonanza is popular with air charter companies, and is operated by private individuals and companies.
In 1949, Turner Airlines (later renamed
Lake Central Airlines) commenced operations using three V-tail Bonanzas.
[48]
Military
Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Haiti
Indonesia
Ivory Coast
Mexico
Netherlands
- Netherlands Government Flying School - 16 x Bonanza F33C[54]
Nicaragua
- National Guard - 1 x Bonanaza A35[55]
Paraguay
Saudi Arabia
Spain
Thailand
United States
Notable flights
- In January 1949, the fourth Bonanza to come off the production line was piloted by Captain William Odom from Honolulu, Hawaii, to the continental United States (2,900 statute miles), the first light airplane to do so.[57]
The airplane was called "Waikiki Beech", and its 40-gallon (150 L) fuel
capacity was increased (using fuselage and wing tanks) to 268 gallons
(1010 L), which gave a still-air range of nearly 5,000 statute miles.
- In March 1949, Captain Odom piloted "Waikiki Beech" a distance of 5,273 miles (8,486 km) from Honolulu to Teterboro, New Jersey,
setting a nonstop record. The flight time was 36:01 hours, at an
average speed of 146.3 miles per hour (235.4 km/h), consuming 272.25 US
gallons (1,030.6 l; 226.70 imp gal) of fuel. After that flight, the
airplane was donated to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air Museum, as the National Air and Space Museum was then called.[58][59]
- On October 7, 1951, an American congressman from Illinois, Peter F. Mack, Jr.,
began an around-the-world trip in "Waikiki Beech", on loan from the
museum and reconditioned at the Beech factory, and renamed "Friendship
Flame". He spent 15 weeks traveling through 30 countries (223 hours
flight time). The plane was again refurbished in 1975 and returned to
the National Air and Space Museum. It is still on display there, with
both names painted on its sides.[60]
- On May 31, 2014, 19-year-old MIT student Matt Guthmiller from Aberdeen, South Dakota, departed El Cajon, California, in a 1981 A36 Bonanza on a 44-day-12-hour solo circumnavigation, making him the Guinness World Record
holder as the youngest person to fly solo around the world when he
landed back in El Cajon on July 14, 2014, at 19 years, 7 months, and 15
days of age. During 170 hours of flight time, he made 23 stops in 15
countries on five continents, and covered about 30,500 miles
(49,100 km), while raising awareness for computer science education and
supporting Code.org.[61]
Accidents and incidents
- On January 26, 1952, Zubeida Begum and Hanwant Singh, Maharaja of Jodhpur, died when their Beechcraft Bonanza crashed in Godwar (Rajasthan),
India. Hanwant Singh was overworked while campaigning for elections and
is reported to have been sleeping only four hours a night. The wreckage
from this crash was discovered in storage in 2011.[62]
- On July 31, 1955, the rising Hollywood star Robert Francis died with two others when the Bonanza he was piloting crashed immediately after take-off from Burbank.[63]
- On February 3, 1959, rock and roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper,
as well as pilot Roger Peterson, died when their Beechcraft Bonanza 35,
registration N3794N, crashed shortly after takeoff at night in poor
weather.[64] The accident later became known as "the Day the Music Died".
- On July 31, 1964, country music star Jim Reeves
and his pianist Dean Manuel died when the Beechcraft Debonair Reeves
was piloting crashed in the Brentwood area of Nashville during a violent
thunderstorm. The wreckage and bodies were discovered on August 2,
1964, amid dense foliage in a wooded area just off Baxter Lane next to
US Interstate 65.[citation needed]
- On February 14, 1975, Congressman Jerry Pettis
was killed when the Beechcraft Model V35B Bonanza he was piloting
crashed near Cherry Valley, California, after he encountered adverse
weather conditions. The Jerry Pettis Memorial Veterans Administration
Hospital in Loma Linda, California, is named in his honor.[65]
- On February 7, 1981, Apple Computer cofounder Steve Wozniak
crashed his Beechcraft Bonanza while taking off from Santa Cruz Sky
Park. The NTSB investigation revealed Wozniak did not have a "high
performance" endorsement (making him legally unqualified to operate the
airplane) and had a "lack of familiarity with the aircraft." The cause
of the crash was determined to be a premature liftoff, followed by a
stall and "mush" into a 12-foot embankment.[66] Wozniak later made a full recovery, albeit with a case of temporary anterograde amnesia.
- On March 19, 1982, Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist Randy Rhoads
was killed when the wing of the Bonanza F35 in which he was riding hit
the band's tour bus and the plane crashed into a tree and a nearby
residence. The pilot and another passenger were also killed. The NTSB
cited the causes of the crash as poor judgement, buzzing, and misjudged
clearance, as well as indicating that the use of the aircraft was not
authorized by the aircraft's owner.[67]
- On March 13, 2006, game show host Peter Tomarken crashed his Bonanza A36 into Santa Monica Bay while climbing from Santa Monica Airport in California. He was en route
to San Diego to pick up a cancer patient who needed transportation to
UCLA Medical Center for treatment. Tomarken and his wife were killed in
the crash.[68]
Specifications (2011 model G36)
General characteristics
- Crew: one
- Capacity: five passengers
- Length: 27 ft 6 in (8.38 m)
- Wingspan: 33 ft 6 in (10.21 m)
- Height: 8 ft 7 in (2.62 m)
- Empty weight: 2,517 lb (1,142 kg)
- Gross weight: 3,650 lb (1,656 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Continental IO-550-B , 300 hp (220 kW)
- Propellers: three-bladed Hartzell Propeller, 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) diameter
Performance
- Cruise speed: 176 kn (203 mph; 326 km/h)
- Range: 716 nmi (824 mi; 1,326 km) with full passenger load
- Ferry range: 930 nmi (1,070 mi; 1,722 km)
- Service ceiling: 18,500 ft (5,600 m)
- Rate of climb: 1,230 ft/min (6.2 m/s)
Avionics
See also
- Related development
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
- Related lists
References
- Notes
At the end of World War II, two all-metal light aircraft emerged, the Model 35 Bonanza and the Cessna 195, that represented very different approaches to the premium end of the postwar civil-aviation market. With its high-wing, seven-cylinder radial engine, fixed tailwheel undercarriage, and roll-down side windows, the Cessna 195 was little more than a continuation of prewar technology; the 35 Bonanza, however, was more like the fighters developed during the war, featuring an easier-to-manage, horizontally opposed, six-cylinder engine, a rakishly streamlined shape, retractable tricycle undercarriage (although the nosewheel initially was not steerable, but castering)[7] and low-wing configuration.A 1947 advertisement for the first Model 35 Bonanza
1965 S35 V-tailed Bonanza
A brand-new 2011 Bonanza G36 at the Beechcraft display; EAA AirVenture 2011
2013 Bonanza G36 at AirVenture 2013
A 1987-built Bonanza F33A in 2016
Beechcraft F33C
A 1965 model S35 at Flagstaff Pulliam Airport
1966 Model V35
A36 Bonanza
Beechcraft A36 Bonanza modified with the Tradewind Turbine's turboprop conversion
The Bonanza is popular with air charter companies, and is operated by private individuals and companies.Astronaut Gordon Cooper, of Gemini V, poses on the wing of his personal Beechcraft Bonanza in 1963.
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