Page 29 - Volume 11 Number 12

In October of that year, the Duke experienced its best month of sales since 1968 when orders for 18 airplanes were received worth more than $3.3 million.
The Model B60 was the final version of Beech Aircraft’s handsome Duke. It featured a cabin that was slightly wider and longer that allowed the use of redesigned seats and improved overall passenger comfort. The engines used improved intake valves, and a new turbosupercharger overboost relief valve was installed. In addition, Beech engineers designed an electronic overheat detection system to monitor the nickel-cadmium battery’s cell temperatures, and added a new duct to provide cooling air to the battery compartment.
For the 1975 model year, the entire pressurization system was upgraded to a lightweight AiResearch design with new Lexan outflow and safety valves and smaller controller in the cockpit that saved space on the instrument panel. By 1976, customers could order wet-cell wingtip fuel tanks each holding 30 gallons and increased the Duke’s range to 1,287 statute miles at a power setting of 65 percent. Time between overhaul of the Lycoming engines increased to 1,600 hours in 1977 and maximum cruise speed was raised to an impressive 283 mph.
Twelve years after the Duke was introduced, in March 1979, Beechcrafters at the Salina facility rolled out the
500th Duke – a Model B60 “Special Edition” bearing a silver and black exterior paint design with a custom cabin interior to match. The high-performance, owner- flown Duke soldiered on until 1982 when lackluster sales forced the company to terminate production after more than 500 airplanes had been built. The last Duke delivered in 1982 was constructor number P-596. Only 16 airplanes were built that year.
When introduced for the 1968 model year, the Duke sold for more than $600,000, but that figure could increase significantly depending on optional equipment and avionics. As of early 2017, used aircraft prices for the Model A60 and B60 Duke ranged from $99,000 up to $180,000 depending on total time airframe/engines and avionic equipment. Major drawbacks to the Duke’s resale value are the high operating, maintenance and replacement costs of the Lycoming engines, as well as airframe corrosion issues with the empennage structure. KA
Ed Phillips, now retired and living in the South, has researched and written eight books on the unique and rich aviation history that belongs to Wichita, Kan. His writings have focused on the evolution of the airplanes, companies and people that have made Wichita the “Air Capital of the World” for more than 80 years.
DECEMBER 2017 KING AIR MAGAZINE • 27