Page 27 - October 2022

Introduced in 1981, the turbocharged Model B36TC Bonanza was Beech Aircraft’s answer to high-performance, turbocharged aircraft being offered by competitors, particularly Cessna Aircraft Company’s T210N Centurion that entered service in 1980. The company had not offered a turbocharged Model 35 since 1970 when the V35B-TC was unveiled (only seven were built before production ended that year). In 1979, however, the company reentered the turbocharged segment when the six- place A36TC made its debut.
The Vietnam War spawned a number of interesting aircraft de- signed to “snoop” on the enemy at night using a package of so- phisticated sensors. To minimize noise during loitering missions, the Model 1079 was equipped with a 375-hp Continental engine featuring a special reduction gearbox that significantly reduced propeller RPM. Dubbed Pave Eagle II by the U.S. Air Force, the modified airframe was based on the Model A36 Bonanza. (BEECHCRAFT CORPORATION; SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AND UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES, WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES)
In an effort to take performance to a higher level, both in terms of speed, altitude and cabin comfort, development of a turbocharged, pressurized Model 36 began in 1978. Designated as the Model T36TC, the experimental aircraft was built strictly as a flying proof-of- concept (POC) airframe. The cabin of the sole prototype, serial number EC-1, was unpressurized but did feature a Continental six-cylinder TSIO-520 with the turbocharger mounted aft of the 325-hp engine. To accommodate that modification,
OCTOBER 2022
a 12-inch extension of the fuselage section ahead of the windshield was installed. From a visual standpoint, however, the airplane’s most salient alteration was installation of a T-tail empennage.
The sleek Beechcraft made its first flight in February 1979 with company engineering test pilots Lou Johansen and Robert Suter in the cockpit. The T36TC program was kept quiet and little is known about the flight test program, but after flying the airplane for more than 82 hours the decision was made
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 25