Beechcraft Model 18

what is it?

The Beechcraft Model 18 (or "Twin Beech", as it is also known) is a 6- to 11-seat, twin-engined, low-wing, tailwheel light aircraft designed and manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. Continuously produced from 1937 to November 1969 (over 32 years, a world record at the time), over 9,000 aircraft were built, making the Model 18 one of the world's most widely used light aircraft. It was sold worldwide as a civilian executive, utility, cargo aircraft, and passenger airliner on tailwheels, nosewheels, skis, or floats, and also saw use as a military aircraft.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · retractable tailwheel (taildragger) · 14.5 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 362 km/htop speed
• seats 6passengers
• size 3,402 kgmax take-off weight
• built 9,722made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 89 years ago, in 1937.
• 🏎️Top speed is 2.8× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 14.5 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1937-01-15

introduced

1937

status

still flying

number built

9,722

role

trainer, transport aircraft and utility aircraft

origin

🇺🇸 United States

makers

Beechcraft

engines

2× Pratt & Whitney R-985-AN-1 "Wasp Junior"

crew

2

passengers

6

length

10.4 m

wingspan

14.5 m

height

3 m

max take-off weight

3,402 kg

top speed

362 km/h

range

—

ceiling

7,925 m

wings

monoplane

landing gear

retractable conventional landing gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.