Page 29 - Volume 11 Number 10

The Bonanza G36 made its debut as part of the Beechcraft product line in 2005. Although overall performance and basic specifications had changed slightly from the original Model A36 of 1968, its price did not. As of early 2017, a standard-equipped G36 cost $800,000 (before options and customization). (TEXTRON AVIATION)
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.
the G36 offers pilots an attractive combination of speed, value, quality and utility that should keep it in production for years to come. KA
NOTES:
1. By comparison, in 1977 when the author went to work at the Beech Aircraft factory as a Bonanza marketing representative, base price for a Model A36 had increased to $105,000. As of early 2017, sticker price for a base Model G36 with typical options is $900,000.
2. Cruisespeedbasedonapowersetting of 75% at an altitude of 6,500 feet and full throttle (2,500 RPM). It is interesting to note that the 2017 G36 offers essentially the same performance as the original Model 36, but features a plethora of upgrades made during nearly 50 years that set it far apart from its 1968 ancestor.
3. Ball, Larry A. “Those Incomparable Bonanzas;” McCormick-Armstrong Company, Inc. Wichita, Kansas, 1971.
4. According to Textron Aviation, as of early 2017 its subsidiary Beech Aircraft Corporation had manufactured more than 4,700 of the Model 36 series, including the A36, G36, A36TC and B36TC.
OCTOBER 2017
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 27