I guess the main question that will linger after Textron’s decision to pull the plug on two of the most iconic light aircraft designs ever built is whether the life support was ended prematurely.
Certainly, based on the delivery figures for the Beech Bonanza and Baron over the past few years, it could be said that the powerful single and its twin-engine sibling that created the aircraft classes they led for many decades should have been killed off years ago. But there is also this lingering doubt about whether the highly respected airplanes died from neglect. High-performance singles and small twins are still selling from other manufacturers, and I suspect the Bonanza and Baron would compare favorably to most of them.
In its statement to AvBrief confirming the sleuthing done by a sharp-eyed AvBrief reader, Textron left the door open to replacing the aircraft with something new with the assertion that it will be “thoughtfully assessing future investments within this segment.” I doubt seriously that there’s anything on the drawing board and that’s certainly Textron’s call to make.
The company has pledged to keep supporting the fleet with parts and technical services so there will be Bonanzas and Barons in the air for a long time.
The announcement came just shy of the Bonanza’s 80th anniversary and the Baron is almost 65 years old. The total number of Bonanza family airframes, which includes the Baron, is 26,165 and counting. That’s a pretty good run and it raises the question of whether either of them will become one of those extremely rare types that is revived in the future.
The only revival that comes to mind for me is the Twin Otter. Viking Aircraft, now part of De Havilland Canada, reintroduced an updated version of the STOL twin turboprop bush plane about 15 years ago and it sells steadily. The company announced an order for 10 Twin Otters at the Dubai Airshow, and the cacophony of rivet guns can be heard coming from its plants in Victoria, B.C., and Calgary, Alberta every weekday. There have also been calls for a revival of the Twotter’s sibling, the De Havilland Beaver, but so far there’s been no indication that’s coming.
Geographical bias may be at play in my inclusion of these aircraft. Anyone aware of other successful reintroductions is welcome to remind me in the comments.
Nevertheless, restarting the Baron and Bonanza lines seems like a stretch, and we can likely say a grateful good-bye to the types. Considering the last ones off the lines will set back their new owners about $1.4 million and $2.3 million respectively, it’s not likely something many of us will be too choked up about.
As a 25year+Bonanza previous Baron owner and maintenance shop operator that has been 20 years in the making by mismanagment , the models have not been upgraded or face lifted since the G1000 retrofit to make them more appealing to potential buyers that actually have the money. Many aftermarket STC’d performance mods like the more efficient balanced Intake 550 engine used on the Cirrus could have been easily incorporated without major design changes and significantly enhanced performance to try to make the aircraft more appealing to the well healed that are still out there . My 1975 upgraded F33A easily outruns my neighbors late model G36…, I think even the really desirable TKS de-ice option long available on Mooneys and Cirrus from the factory and known ice certified via STC on the G36 forever was not offered installed from the factory as an option, I actually wondered why they bothered still making 5 planes a year for quite a while
Those are about the same price points for the DA50 and DA62. Both providing lessor performance than the Beech, except, they run on Jet A of which I am not a fan of.
Why are you not a fan of Jet A?
I can think of two other small aircraft that have been reintroduced besides the ones mentioned. The Aeronca Champ and Taylorcraft. Both have never done well. They end up competing with existing aircraft, and at a much higher price point. Just doesn’t make much sense to me. Move on and fine other options.
I don’t think among the younger pilots now that many of them fly for the thrill and mystery of flight, Champs and T-Carts. Aviation now points folks towards a career or transportation. No mystery to airplanes anymore, no more so than cars.
As a Bonanza owner (J35), I’m sad to see the neglect that has been the hallmark of Beech products over the past years. Other manufacturers have updated their lesser-performing products with BRS, TKS, autoland and other similar features that undercut Textron’s products, and there has been zero attempt at a competitive response. Given Textron’s apparent trajectory with Pipistrel, I’m guessing that the Panthera is also DOA. If this is the state of American manufacturing as a whole, we may as well give up now.
I’m as nostalgic about the Beech aircraft as anyone. Yet, we have been complaining about price, complexity of modifications and support for decades. The re-write of the Special Airworthiness Certificate rules should be the answer. Textron must believe that the future of General Aviation (GA) doesn’t include many of their classic Cessna and Beechcraft Standard Airworthiness Certificate GA Fleet.
Aircraft like the https://bushliner.com/ and the https://www.vansaircraft.com/rv-15/ are the NEXT generation of GA Aircraft. These aircraft will come with much easier rules for modifications and support. The first 123 years since the Wright Flyer have been a lot fun but, times are a changin’. Textron builds commercial aircraft now and that’s good. Time to make room for the New GA Gals/Guys 🙂
Good points.
To my mind, this marks the end of general aviation as I have known it. Even though I climbed the Cessna ladder (210, 310, 340, 425), I have a great deal of respect for the Bonanza and Baron as outstanding, comfortable, cross country travellers. They were also, 45 years ago, affordable.
Would’ve been cool to see Beechcraft instead make an attempt to modernize them more and especially with the bonanza give citrus some competition. But unless you need the 6th seat the bonanza is definitely more dated and less modern. Seems Beechcraft just didn’t want to try and compete there.
Underneath it all Citrus are lemons!
I recently sold my D35…finally getting to own my “dream” airplane for several years. I was disappointed to see it go. But at 73, my insurance costs combined with scarcity of first gen parts, followed with out of stock, on and off, of simple but vital components such as an oil filter for it’s mid-time E-225-8 Continental. I rebuilt the outstanding, bullet-proof, no AD Beech 215 electric prop after a year long search for a used, serviceable pitch change bearing, thanking my lucky stars when I located one less than $4k. My ruddervators were still corrosion free after reskinning in 1997…another huge blessing. But what a magnificent flying machine!
It’s not about nostalgia that contributes to my sincere frustration about our country’s lack of interest in manufacturing, particularly GA airplanes. The Klapmier brothers did a great job bringing the Cirrus to market. Even sold a bunch of airplanes making it a piston single sales leader but still needed more investment capital. No American takers. So, China invested in this now former American aircraft manufacturer still the piston single sales leader, more refined, continuously improved, including adding a state of the art delivery center, and outstanding training curriculum modeled after the American Bonanza Society’s program that dramatically improved the Bonanza’s safety record. Likewise, Cirrus has enjoyed similar safety records. Cirrus aircraft still being manufactured in the USA with American workers. Like the last few G36’s, a SR22T can easily be north of 1 million dollars. Continental, another former American aviation icon is Chinese owned, still manufactured in the USA by American workers, and still being refined largely for the Cirrus market. Diamond Aircraft, Chinese owned but built in Europe, by Europeans, being refined, new models added, including bringing back the Katana into production satisfying more training demand.
American leadership and investment seems to be uninterested in making and keeping American manufacturing great again. The American worker cannot be blamed for being less talented and too expensive to be competitive in the last decade of production. Today, still number one in piston singles sales. Today, Cirrus has developed it’s own niche market with Vision Jet. China has done America better than America… with American labor.
Textron has been in this similar manufacturing disinterested malaise leading to the demise of Bonanza and Baron. I wonder how long it will take for the return of both models under Chinese manufacturing leadership with American labor. Might even see Beechcraft King Air’s being built vs Textron King Airs in the future.
American workers prove everyday, America can manufacture, innovate, and refine already great designs pioneered by American grit and ingenuity. Today, they do it for China…whose manufacturing leadership being encouraged by their country’s leadership to innovate, invest in, a great product that is now competive in the global market. I wonder who they learned that from?