Textron halts Bonanza, Baron lines

A Textron Aviation spokesperson emailed a statement on the decision November 20, after pages for both piston models were removed from the company website:

"As part of Textron Aviation's product investment plan, the company will end production of the Beechcraft Baron G58 and Beechcraft Bonanza G36 models once all current orders are fulfilled," the company said. "Known for their power and craftsmanship, the Baron and Bonanza aircraft have been cornerstones of the company’s leadership in the piston market for nearly eight decades. More than 6,000 Baron and 18,000 Bonanza aircraft have been delivered worldwide."

General Aviation Manufacturers Association annual shipment reports show sales of both models slowed to a trickle in recent years—13 Bonanzas and 23 Barons were delivered in 2017­ before deliveries of both models stopped cold during the COVID-19 pandemic: zero for 2021, the same year that Textron Aviation announced a seventy-fifth anniversary special edition Bonanza was available for delivery in 2022, with modern avionics and a retro color scheme. Just three Bonanzas (no Barons) were reported sold in 2022, followed by five of each model in 2023, followed by five Bonanzas and two Barons in 2024. Cirrus Aircraft, meanwhile, sold four-seat piston singles and seven-seat jets by the dozens, or even hundreds, year after year.

American Bonanza Society Air Safety Foundation Executive Director Tom Turner wrote that Textron Aviation has assured his organization that Textron will continue to provide parts and engineering support for both models.

"With continued parts support from Textron Aviation, the large aftermarket that has grown around the product line over the decades, the passion of Beech owners, and the support of the American Bonanza Society and the ABS Air Safety Foundation, Bonanzas, Debonairs, Barons and Travel Airs still have a long and bright future," Turner wrote.

The original Model 35 Bonanza first flew on December 22, 1945, the manifestation of Walter Beech's desire to apply the military aeronautical advances achieved during World War II to a civilian model that had six seats, boasted superior speed, and "cut a swath through general aviation like a timeshare salesman through a clutch of snowbirds," according to AOPA's aircraft guide. Derivatives included the Model 33 Debonair introduced in 1960, and a military version adapted for surveillance missions during the Vietnam War, the QU–22B Pave Eagle, which married a Bonanza fuselage to the wings and landing gear of a Baron.

Earthrounder Adrian Eichhorn circumnavigated east-west in 2016, and flew over the north pole in 2021 in his P35 Bonanza. He also mentored fellow earthrounder Shinji Maeda, who flew a nearly identical Bonanza around the world east-west that same year.

The Baron marked 50 years in production in 2010 (four years before Beechcraft was acquired by Textron) with an anniversary edition of the G58 that featured Garmin avionics and optional weather radar, since the nose was not occupied by an engine or propeller. Aviation writer Pete Bedell credited the Baron's impressive longevity to a design that "simply works."

"If you need to move four people and their gear 600 nm in three hours, there are several airplanes to meet the mission," Bedell wrote. "But do they have twin-engine redundancy and its resulting reassurance, known-ice capability, weather radar, the ability to get in and out of short/unimproved airstrips, or a service network that consists of, say, basically any mechanic in the country? For these reasons, there has been a Baron in the lineup at Beechcraft for five decades."

AOPA more recently used another Baron to demonstrate unleaded fuel alongside traditional avgas.

The company statement described the discontinuation of the last two Beechcraft piston models as a "strategic shift" that "will enable Textron Aviation to focus on welcoming the [single-engine turbine] Beechcraft Denali to its product portfolio while thoughtfully assessing future investments within this segment."