Beechcraft Bonanza
| Bonanza | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Beech S35 Bonanza | |
| Role | Civil utility aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Beechcraft |
| First flight | December 22, 1945 |
| Introduction | 1947 |
| Status | In service |
| Produced | 1947–present |
| Number built | >17,000 |
| Unit cost |
US$800,000 (2016)
|
| Variants |
Beechcraft Travel Air Bay Super V Beechcraft T-34 Mentor RTAF-2 |
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. More than 17,000 Bonanzas of all variants have been built, produced in both distinctive V-tail and conventional tail configurations.
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 streamlined shape, retractable tricycle undercarriage (although the nosewheel initially was not steerable, but castering) 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. The first 30–40 Bonanzas produced had fabric-covered flaps and ailerons, after which, those surfaces were covered with magnesium alloy sheet. The V-tail design gained a reputation as the "forked-tail doctor killer", due to crashes by overconfident amateur pilots with high-level skills outside aviation, fatal accidents, and inflight breakups. "Doctor killer" has sometimes been used to describe the conventional-tailed version, as well.
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