Beech 2000 Starship
The Beechcraft Starship was a radical departure from conventional business aircraft design, with forward-mounted canard wings, rear-facing pusher propellers, and an all-composite airframe at a time when most business turboprops still used riveted aluminium. Its futuristic looks and advanced construction made it a technological showcase, but its high cost and heavier-than-projected weight from FAA certification requirements hurt its commercial prospects badly. Beechcraft eventually bought back and scrapped most of the small production run rather than continue supporting a money-losing program. Only a handful survive today, making it one of the rarest and most distinctive business aircraft ever built.
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Did you know?
The Starship is instantly recognisable for its forward-mounted canard wings, rear-facing pusher propellers, and all-composite airframe, radical for a 1980s business turboprop.
Specifications
| Length | 14.1 m (46 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 16.6 m (54 ft) |
| Height | 3.8 m (13 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 8 |
| Persons on board | 8 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 6.7 t |
| Range | 1,500 NM (2,778 km) |
| Maximum speed | 335 kt (620 km/h) |
| Stall speed | 97 kt (180 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 41,000 ft (12,497 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 35,000 ft (10,668 m) |
| Rate of climb | 2,748 ft/min (14 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 1,248 m (4,094 ft) |
| Landing distance | 867 m (2,844 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 4,415 l |
| Engines | 2x Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67A (pusher) |
| Units built | 53 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
In CatchFlights the Beech 2000 Starship starts as a Legendary catch. The tier is an editorial judgement of how special a sighting of this type is. The more often you catch it, the closer it moves to Common for you. The first catch of a legendary type pays a bonus of its own.
A catch counts for the manufacturer Beech, the 2000 Starship family and the model in your collection, and the daily Type Rating quiz asks about the types of each family.
Catch it yourself.CatchFlights shows the aircraft flying near you on a radar, so a type like this one is only a catch away when it passes overhead. Explore CatchFlights.
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