Beechcraft Past and Present

As Beechcraft emerges from bankruptcy, it is crafting its future by returning to its roots.

The still-in-demand G36 Bonanza will live on to see another day. Some new models, including the King Air turbine single, possibly will feature carbon fiber fuselages.

The fuselage shown here is being built for a Premier 1A.

Over the past 20 years, many insiders forecast the demise of the turboprop. Despite the predictions, King Airs have delivered consistently strong sales for HBC.

As part of the plan, Beechcraft will continue to build King Airs in Wichita, Kansas, as it has for 50 years. The jet business, a relative newcomer to the company with the adoption of two programs and the birth of two new products, will cease.

The new business plan at the emerging Beechcraft Corp. calls for a lineup of airplanes from just less than $1 million to about $8 million, with the majority of them derived from the famously utilitarian Beechcraft King Air.

Aircraft Beechcraft Photos

Flying StaffEditor

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