![beechcraft a36 bonanza performance beechcraft a36 bonanza performance](https://www.tandgflying.com/uploads/3/8/3/7/38378191/8067653_orig.jpeg)
“This is where most pilots will fly the airplane,” says Conrad. In fact, we scampered up to 17,500 in just 10 minutes.Īfter leveling off, the airplane quickly reached its max cruise airspeed of 171 KIAS, resulting in 230 KTAS while burning 30 gph. And the TurbineAir will maintain that rate of climb right up to FL180. Initial rate of climb settled between 1,700 and 2,000 feet per minute. After 1,000 feet of runway, we were rotating into a 15-degree pitch while holding 100 knots. Even with a 3,900-foot density altitude, the TurbineAir didn’t disappoint in the acceleration department.
![beechcraft a36 bonanza performance beechcraft a36 bonanza performance](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/eb/0a/54/eb0a5430a906be03fa53f9c2b561c1a0--wish-list-military-aircraft.jpg)
With two on board and 110 gallons of fuel, the TurbineAir was already at its max takeoff weight, giving evidence of the design’s limited useful load. On the day of our test flight, it was a warm 82 degrees Fahrenheit at Rocket headquarters on Felts Field in Spokane, Washington. West Pacific’s TurbineAir wipes out the sluggish climb and turns the B36TC into a comparative screamer, from the runway to the flight levels. In the low 20s, the B36TC is a 200-knot cruiser on about 17 gph, but the trip has to be a long one to justify the slow climb. A climb to Flight Level 250 in a stock B36TC is an agonizing 45-minute affair during which the pilot has to deftly manage fuel flow and airspeed in order to keep cylinder head temperatures in check. Originally powered by a 300-horsepower Continental TSIO-520-UB, the B36TC is plagued by lackluster climb performance and a hot-running engine installation (“Turn of the Century Bonanza,” January 2000 AOPA Pilot). It should be noted that this airplane is not the same as the Tradewinds Turbine Bonanza conversion, which utilizes a Rolls-Royce/Allison turboprop and was available only for the A36.
![beechcraft a36 bonanza performance beechcraft a36 bonanza performance](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/0b/76/9e/0b769e98116ac6d0403386270f9cc2f9.jpg)
As expected, dropping a 500-shaft-horsepower PT6 in the nose of a Bonanza creates a real performer, and solves many of the problems that plagued the B36TC. The $450,000 conversion can be applied only to the longer-wing Bonanza B36TC, which was produced by Beechcraft from 1982 to 2002.
Beechcraft a36 bonanza performance mod#
The least expensive mod to emerge from the Rocket hangar is the TurbineAir, marketed under an offshoot company known as West Pacific Air LLC. We reviewed the Royal Turbine modification of the Duke (“Turbine Pilot: Ruler of Performance,” August 2007 AOPA Pilot) and were impressed to see the Duke’s performance match its dashing looks. Recently, Rocket President Darwin Conrad has turned his attention to Beechcraft airplanes, notably the Bonanza B36TC and Duke models. It has attracted customers here in the United States and especially in countries where avgas is prohibitively expensive or simply not available. Rocket Engineering’s most popular mod is the JetProp DLX conversion of the Piper Malibu and Mirage, which replaces the piston engine with a Pratt & Whitney PT6. Since then, Rocket has shifted to turbine conversions, realizing that avgas for piston engines may someday become extinct. Later, the company began dropping huge engines in the noses of Mooneys, creating the popular Rocket and Missile conversions. It all started in 1989 when Rocket began adding turbos to Mooneys. Bedellįor nearly 25 years, Rocket Engineering has infused mundane airplanes with blistering performance enhancements. This article first appeared in AOPA authored by Pete A.