Page 24 - Volume 12 Number 2

The patriarch of all Beechcraft King Airs was the Travel Air Type 6000 “cabin job.” Designed and developed in 1927, the handsome monoplane could seat six passengers and two pilots and was powered by a nine-cylinder Wright J5-series static, air-cooled radial engine rated at 200 horsepower. The ship was flown extensively around the United States on demonstration tours, often with salesman extraordinaire Walter Beech at the controls.
(EDWARD H. PHILLIPS COLLECTION)
chief pilots. The response clearly indicated that if Travel Air offered the right airplane at the right price with the right performance and cabin comfort, orders would be forthcoming. That was sufficient evidence for Walter Beech to order development of what would become the Type 6000.
Following months of design work, on April 15, 1928, a prototype was rolled out into the Kansas sunshine. Beech billed the airplane as the “Limousine of the Air” – an airplane that, at least from a purely historical viewpoint, could be considered the patriarch of all future Beechcraft business aircraft. In addition, it set the tone for Mr. Beech’s marketing strategies for what an executive transport should be. The Type 6000 also put Travel Air ahead of its competitors in the lightweight aircraft segment.
The prototype was powered by Wright J-5C, nine- cylinder radial engine rated at 200 horsepower. Six wicker-type seats were installed in the spacious cabin. The seats were designed for quick removal that allowed a generous volume for hauling cargo and bulky items. In executive configuration, passengers entered the heated cabin through a large door on the right side of the fuselage. A second, smaller door on the right, forward fuselage allowed entry/egress from the cockpit for the flight crew. One feature of the cabin was the installation of automobile-style, plate glass cabin windows that could be rolled down for ventilation.
Basic specifications included a wingspan of 48 feet 7 inches, length of 30 feet 10.5 inches and a height of eight feet 8.5 inches. The monoplane weighed 2,200 pounds empty and had a maximum gross weight of 3,800 pounds. Cruising speed was 105 mph. Travel Air’s chief pilot, Clarence Clark, flew the ship on a series of test flights to probe the airplane’s flight characteristics. Rate of climb was about 700 feet per minute with a service ceiling of 12,000 feet. Fully loaded, takeoff distance was 720 feet and landing rollout was 300 feet with heavy application of the mechanical brakes.
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By the early summer of 1928, production plans for the new airplane were well underway, and Beech wasted no time gathering orders for the monoplane. In June he flew the ship on the Kansas Air Tour where more than 10,000 people saw the airplane, including a number of prospects who later signed up to buy the handsome Travel Air. Later that month Walter took the ship to the East Coast where he managed to secure another 14 orders. Although pilots and businessmen like the Type 6000, they asked that the cabin be enlarged and more powerful engines made available to improve performance. Beech listened, and Travel Air engineers redesigned the airplane into the Type 6000B that entered production later that year. The first production Type 6000B, serial number 790 and registered NC6469, was delivered to Wilbur D. May.
As 1928 progressed, overall business for the company was very strong as the front office received about $12,000 in orders for new airplanes every day. It was no surprise to Walter Beech, however, that a growing number of orders were not for the company’s tried-and-
In 1928, Clyde V. Cessna’s Wichita-based Cessna
Aircraft Company introduced the handsome CW-6 cabin monoplane powered by Wright J-5 radial engine (note front-mount magnetos that were later relocated to the rear accessory section). The airplane’s outstanding feature
was its full cantilever wing that was a Cessna hallmark.
The showroom-new Dodge Brothers and REO automobiles on display would be worth a fortune in 2018 dollars.
(ROBERT PICKETT COLLECTION/KANSAS AVIATION MUSEUM)
FEBRUARY 2018