In Box Review of Croco 1/72nd Scale
Beech Twin Bonanza
Kit no. CMD7219
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
Available at one location on Ebay for $47.99
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
Available at one location on Ebay for $47.99
HISTORY:
The Beechcraft Model 50 Twin Bonanza is a small twin-engined aircraft designed by Beechcraft as an executive transport for the business market. It was developed to fill a gap in Beechcraft's product line between the single-engined Model 35 Bonanza and the larger Model 18. The Twin Bonanza is about 50% larger than the Bonanza, has more powerful engines, and is significantly heavier, while in its earliest form having only half the passenger capacity of the Model 18.
The Twin Bonanza is not a true twin-engined derivative of the Bonanza since the cabin is wider and longer, however it did use some of the tooling jigs for the Bonanza as did the Travel Air (which was a closer derivative designed later).
The Twin Bonanza was first flown on November 15, 1949 after rapid development, begun only in April of that year. The Model 50's type certificate was awarded in 1951, and production began the same year.
The United States Army adopted the Twin Bonanza as the L-23 Seminole utility transport, making it the largest fixed-wing aircraft in its inventory at that time. According to Ralph Harmon, the airplane's designer, during an initial demonstration flight for the Army, Claude Palmer, a Beechcraft Demonstration Test Pilot, crashed while trying to land over a 50-foot (15 m) tree line while full of soldiers and sandbags.
Everyone on board walked away from the crash. The Army was impressed with the structural strength of the Twin Bonanza, eventually purchasing 216 of the 994 examples produced. It was also the first twin-engined aircraft in its class to be offered to the business market, but the Korean War was raging in the early 1950s and the US Army took almost the entire production for 1952 and 1953.
The Beechcraft Model 65 Queen Air and Model 90 King Air are both direct descendants of the Model 50 Twin Bonanza. All three aircraft share the same basic wing design, as well as landing gear, flaps, instrument panels, fuel cells, and more. The Queen Air added a larger cabin to the design, while the later King Air added turbine power and pressurization.
Twin Bonanza production ended in 1963[4] while the King Air was under development.
In January 2012 the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority issued an airworthiness directive grounding all Bonanzas, Twin Bonanzas and Debonairs equipped with a single pole-style yoke, having forward elevator control cables more than 15 years old, until they could be inspected. The AD was issued based on two aircraft found to have frayed cables, one of which suffered a cable failure just prior to takeoff and resulting concerns about the age of the cables in fleet aircraft of this age.
At the time of the grounding some Bonanzas had reached 64 years in service. Aircraft with frayed cables were grounded until the cables were replaced and those that passed inspection were required to have their cables replaced within 60 days regardless.
The AD affected only Australian aircraft and was not adopted by the airworthiness authority responsible for the type certificate, the US Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA instead opted to issue a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) requesting that the elevator control cables be inspected during the annual inspection.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Utility aircraft
Manufacturer: Beech Aircraft Corporation
First flight: November 15, 1949
Introduction to service: 1951
Status: Active
Primary user: Private operators
Produced: 1951–1961
Number built: 975 (includes 195 L-23)
Variants: L-23/U-8 Seminole
Developed into: Beechcraft Queen Air
The Beechcraft Model 50 Twin Bonanza is a small twin-engined aircraft designed by Beechcraft as an executive transport for the business market. It was developed to fill a gap in Beechcraft's product line between the single-engined Model 35 Bonanza and the larger Model 18. The Twin Bonanza is about 50% larger than the Bonanza, has more powerful engines, and is significantly heavier, while in its earliest form having only half the passenger capacity of the Model 18.
The Twin Bonanza is not a true twin-engined derivative of the Bonanza since the cabin is wider and longer, however it did use some of the tooling jigs for the Bonanza as did the Travel Air (which was a closer derivative designed later).
The Twin Bonanza was first flown on November 15, 1949 after rapid development, begun only in April of that year. The Model 50's type certificate was awarded in 1951, and production began the same year.
The United States Army adopted the Twin Bonanza as the L-23 Seminole utility transport, making it the largest fixed-wing aircraft in its inventory at that time. According to Ralph Harmon, the airplane's designer, during an initial demonstration flight for the Army, Claude Palmer, a Beechcraft Demonstration Test Pilot, crashed while trying to land over a 50-foot (15 m) tree line while full of soldiers and sandbags.
Everyone on board walked away from the crash. The Army was impressed with the structural strength of the Twin Bonanza, eventually purchasing 216 of the 994 examples produced. It was also the first twin-engined aircraft in its class to be offered to the business market, but the Korean War was raging in the early 1950s and the US Army took almost the entire production for 1952 and 1953.
The Beechcraft Model 65 Queen Air and Model 90 King Air are both direct descendants of the Model 50 Twin Bonanza. All three aircraft share the same basic wing design, as well as landing gear, flaps, instrument panels, fuel cells, and more. The Queen Air added a larger cabin to the design, while the later King Air added turbine power and pressurization.
Twin Bonanza production ended in 1963[4] while the King Air was under development.
In January 2012 the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority issued an airworthiness directive grounding all Bonanzas, Twin Bonanzas and Debonairs equipped with a single pole-style yoke, having forward elevator control cables more than 15 years old, until they could be inspected. The AD was issued based on two aircraft found to have frayed cables, one of which suffered a cable failure just prior to takeoff and resulting concerns about the age of the cables in fleet aircraft of this age.
At the time of the grounding some Bonanzas had reached 64 years in service. Aircraft with frayed cables were grounded until the cables were replaced and those that passed inspection were required to have their cables replaced within 60 days regardless.
The AD affected only Australian aircraft and was not adopted by the airworthiness authority responsible for the type certificate, the US Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA instead opted to issue a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) requesting that the elevator control cables be inspected during the annual inspection.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Utility aircraft
Manufacturer: Beech Aircraft Corporation
First flight: November 15, 1949
Introduction to service: 1951
Status: Active
Primary user: Private operators
Produced: 1951–1961
Number built: 975 (includes 195 L-23)
Variants: L-23/U-8 Seminole
Developed into: Beechcraft Queen Air
THE KIT:
Croco is a model company based in Riga, Lithuania.
They manufacture resin model kits in 1/72nd scale, photo etched parts and decals.
The kit comes in a generic brown box with a hinged lid that has locking flaps. The cover art is a separate sheet glued to the lid. It shows a color photo of an actual Beech Twin Bonanza sitting on a runway. It is overall chalk white, with a red propeller warning band around its nose, black wing leading edges and the tops of the engine nacelles and an anti-glare panel in front of the windshield. The rudder has a black leading edge and the blade antenna on the roof is black.
The rudder has two narrow horizontal bands across it with U.S. ARMY over 63701 between the bands
The kit project was done by Leonid Shilin (author) & Konstantin Nikolaychuk (master)
One corner of the box art has a character of a crocodile and says “Croco only good accessories.”
Croco is a model company based in Riga, Lithuania.
They manufacture resin model kits in 1/72nd scale, photo etched parts and decals.
The kit comes in a generic brown box with a hinged lid that has locking flaps. The cover art is a separate sheet glued to the lid. It shows a color photo of an actual Beech Twin Bonanza sitting on a runway. It is overall chalk white, with a red propeller warning band around its nose, black wing leading edges and the tops of the engine nacelles and an anti-glare panel in front of the windshield. The rudder has a black leading edge and the blade antenna on the roof is black.
The rudder has two narrow horizontal bands across it with U.S. ARMY over 63701 between the bands
The kit project was done by Leonid Shilin (author) & Konstantin Nikolaychuk (master)
One corner of the box art has a character of a crocodile and says “Croco only good accessories.”
WHAT’S IN THE BOX:
This kit holds 64 tan resin parts, 2 clear vacuform canopies, the decal sheet and the instructions in 3 zip locked type cello bags.
The instructions consists of a single-sheet printed on both sides in 5 ½” x 8 ¼” format. It is folded once to fit the box.
The two sides give the assembly steps, numbered as being only 3. However, I count 10 steps shown.
This kit holds 64 tan resin parts, 2 clear vacuform canopies, the decal sheet and the instructions in 3 zip locked type cello bags.
The instructions consists of a single-sheet printed on both sides in 5 ½” x 8 ¼” format. It is folded once to fit the box.
The two sides give the assembly steps, numbered as being only 3. However, I count 10 steps shown.
The other side of the sheet.
The tan resin parts consists of: the fuselage halves.
The two one piece wings
The elevators and rudder.
The detail parts consist of the main wheels, nose wheel, individual propeller blades & their hubs, engines, propeller spinners, alternate fuselage noses, engine nacelle halves, cockpit floor, steering wheels, seats, main wheels and nose wheel doors, gear struts, exhaust pipes and many control levers.
The decal sheet for one version.
There are no figures included. Detail is very good and finely engraved panel lines. Flash is minimal and easily removed.
There is an extra vacuformed canopy, in case you damage one.
There is an extra vacuformed canopy, in case you damage one.
I want to sincerely thank Croco Models for this review sample.
Thanks to Croco models for the review sample. Croco sets and kits can be found via a web search or contact them direct at