Textron Aviation has unveiled a special edition 75th anniversary option for its Beechcraft Bonanza G36, distinguished by its custom interior and paint scheme inspired by Olive Ann Beech’s signature blue color.
The order book is open for the limited-edition model that will be delivered in 2022 — the 75th year since it first entered the market for the longest continuously produced aircraft in history. The Beechcraft Bonanza continues to be a cornerstone of the company’s piston lineup, according to company officials.
“The formula for the Beechcraft Bonanza’s longevity involves an ageless style and utility, a passionate legion of owners and aspiring owners, and a seven-decade commitment by company engineers to continuously refine and update features to meet customer, technology, regulatory and environmental needs,” said Lannie O’Bannion, senior vice president, Global Sales & Flight Operations. “We know Walter and Olive Ann Beech would be proud of where we’ve taken their stylish and powerful piston with today’s Bonanza G36.”
More than 18,000 Bonanza aircraft have entered the market since deliveries began, 15 years after Walter and Olive Ann started Beech Aircraft Company in Wichita, Kansas.
“The retro scheme of our 75th anniversary special edition Bonanza is a nod to Mrs. Beech’s strength, vision, pioneering leadership and her well-documented style,” O’Bannion said. “The interior color combination is inspired by trends from the 1950s, when Mrs. Beech assumed leadership of the company.”
Olive Ann became president in 1950 upon Walter’s death, making her the first woman to head a major aircraft company. Her legendary career spanned 50 years and by the time she retired in 1982, she’d played key roles in growing the company from 10 to 10,000 employees.
The 75th anniversary special edition Beechcraft Bonanza G36 is inspired by “Mrs. Beech Blue,” a custom color Olive Ann adopted on the advice of fashion designer Oleg Cassini. The color became her brand and could be found on everything from her dress suits and office furnishings to her automobile’s paint and personal aircraft interiors.
The commemorative Bonanza G36 stylishly incorporates the color on the exterior paint scheme and the interior’s window panels, carpet and accents. Other details include a “Bubble B” logo registered in 1954 on the carpet entry and her signature used as a metal piece above the cabin table and as an exterior graphic below the pilot window.
Powered by a 300-horsepower Continental IO-550-B engine and a three-blade constant-speed propeller, the six-seat Bonanza G36 has a maximum cruise speed of 176 knots, a maximum range of more than 920 nautical miles, a 1,060-pound maximum payload, and an 18,500-foot service ceiling. Recent upgrades includes Garmin’s G1000 NXI next-generation integrated flight deck.
I have N3816N and am still flying it. Great airplane !!
Any idea where earliest V-Tail Bonanza(s) [SN00001 etc]… and/or earliest experimental/test aircraft… are located? Museums?
Any word from Beech ‘what’s next’ in single-engine line?
My best guess as to “what’s next” in a Beech single is a 76th anniversary model Bonanza, complete with the latest revision of all its Garmin avionics, and a (even) higher price tag. The good news is that I’m not sure there is much else they can cram into them to bring the useful load down further.
With luck, assuming my children can afford to take up flying at all, and that the EPA hasn’t made it impossible to fuel the aircraft, and that the FAA hasn’t driven GA completely off the map, maybe my children will have a chance to fly one after 40 or 50 years of use and depreciation!