Special Retro-Inspired Beechcraft Bonanza Entering Limited Production To Celebrate Aircraft’s 75th Anniversary

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In celebration of the Beechcraft Bonanza’s 75th anniversary in 2022, Textron Aviation is producing a limited-edition Bonanza G36 that draws inspiration from Olive Beech, who co-founded the Beech Aircraft Company in 1932. (Image courtesy of Textron Aviation.)

Next year marks the 75th anniversary of the Beechcraft Bonanza, the longest continuously produced aircraft in aviation history. To celebrate, Textron Aviation is producing a limited-edition retro version of the single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza G36 piston model, with Beechcraft co-founder and aviation icon Olive Ann Beech serving as its inspiration. Beech founded Beechcraft in 1932 as the Beech Aircraft Company with her husband, Walter, and the Bonanza entered the market 15 years later. Since then, the company has delivered more than 18,000 Bonanza aircraft.

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After Walter Beech’s death in 1950, Olive Beech assumed leadership of Beech Aircraft Company, making her the first woman to lead a major aircraft company. Before retiring in 1982, she helped expand the company from 10 to 10,000 employees. The limited-edition Bonanza G36 will feature the signature “Mrs. Beech Blue” color she adopted for aircraft interiors, dresses, office furnishings, and more. Beech, who reportedly stated, “The world is small if you fly a Beechcraft,” embraced the color on advice from noted fashion designer Oleg Cassini.

“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,” says Lannie O’Bannion, Textron Aviation senior vice president, global sales and flight operations. “The interior color combination is inspired by trends from the 1950s, when Mrs. Beech assumed leadership of the company.”

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The special-edition Bonanza G36 features the retro Mrs. Beech Blue color that Olive Beech was known for, as well as the Bubble B logo that the company registered in 1954. (Image courtesy of Textron Aviation.)

Bubble B

The commemorative Bonanza G36 incorporates the retro Mrs. Beech Blue color into the exterior’s paint scheme and interior window panels, carpet, and accents. The plane also features the manufacturer’s “Bubble B” logo on the carpet entry, and Olive Beech’s personal signature above the cabin table and below the pilot window on the plane’s exterior.

The six-seat G36 is designed and certified in the rugged utility category. It uses a 300-horsepower (224-kilowatt) Continental IO-550-B engine and is rated for a 920-nautical-mile (1,704-kilometer) flight range, a maximum cruise speed of 176 knots, and a 1,060-pound (481-kilogram) maximum payload. Newer upgrades include an integrated Garmin G1000 NXi flight deck.

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Source: Textron Aviation