Beech Baron

Baron
Beechcraft Baron 58P
Role	Civil utility aircraft
National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Beechcraft
First flight	29 February 1960
Status	In production
Primary user	United States Army (historical)
Produced	1961-present
Number built	6691+
Unit cost	US$1.388 million (2016)
Developed from	Beechcraft Travel Air

The Beechcraft Baron is a light, twin-engined piston aircraft developed by Beechcraft. The Baron is a variant of the Travel Air, and was introduced in 1961.

The direct predecessor of the Baron was the Beechcraft 95 Travel Air, which incorporated the fuselage of the Bonanza and the tail control surfaces of the T-34 Mentor military trainer. To create the new airplane, the Travel Air's tail was replaced with that of the Beechcraft Debonair, the engine nacelles were streamlined, six-cylinder engines were added, and the aircraft's name was changed. In 1960, the Piper Aztec was introduced, utilizing two, 250 hp Lycoming O-540 engines; Cessna too had improved their 310 with two Continental IO-470 D, producing 260 hp. Meanwhile, Beechcraft's Bonanza had been improved with a Continental IO-470-N, but the answer to competition was to make a true Twin Bonanza. The first model, the 55, was powered by two, six-cylinder IO-470-L engines, producing 260 hp at 2,625rpm; it was introduced in 1961. It included the fully swept vertical stabilizer of the Debonair, while still retaining the four to four+five place seating of the Travel Air.

Since its inception, the Baron has always been near the top of the light airplane hierarchy. In 2008 a new Baron costs roughly $1,040,000. As expensive to operate as it is to buy, the 'next step up' from a Baron is a very big one. Faster aircraft, with greater range and more load-carrying capability are generally turbine-powered and far more expensive. The older Baron variants, mainly the 55 series, have dropped little in value, with their fair market prices numerically equal to that of their original pricing, in today's dollars.

Barons come in three basic types: the Baron 55 (short body), Baron 56 (short body) and Baron 58 (long body), with several sub-variants each.