Beechcraft Model 99#99 Airliner

{{Infobox aircraft

|name= Model 99

|image= Jamaica Air Shuttle Beechcraft Model 99 In Flight.jpg

|caption= A Jamaica Air Shuttle Model 99

|type=Twin-engined utility monoplane

|national_origin=United States

|manufacturer=Beechcraft

|designer=

|first_flight=July 1966

|introduction=1968

|retired=

|status= In service

|produced= 1966–1987

|primary_user=

|more_users=

|number_built=

|developed_from= Beechcraft King Air
Beechcraft Queen Air

|variants=

}}

The Beechcraft Model 99 is a civilian aircraft produced by American manufacturer Beechcraft. It is also known as the Beech 99 Airliner and the Commuter 99. The 99 is a twin-engine, unpressurized, 15 to 17 passenger seat turboprop aircraft, derived from the earlier Beechcraft King Air and Queen Air. It uses the wings of the Queen Air, the engines and nacelles of the King Air, and sub-systems from both, with a specifically designed nose structure.

Design and development

Designed in the 1960s as a replacement for the Beechcraft Model 18, it first flew in July 1966. It received type certification on May 2, 1968, and 62 aircraft were delivered by the end of the year.

In 1984, the Beechcraft 1900, a pressurized 19-passenger airplane, was introduced as the follow-on aircraft.

Production ended in early 1987 with 239 airframes completed. Nearly half the Beech 99s in airline service are now operated as freighters by Ameriflight.

Variants

File:Ameriflight Beech 99 Airliner N51RP cn U-212 (5048494648).jpg Beech 99 freighter on approach to Las Vegas]]

File:Beech -99 N316VA AlCtr Britt ORD 21.10.75 edited-2.jpg operating under contract to Allegheny Commuter at Chicago O'Hare in 1975]]

{{visible anchor|99 Airliner}}: Twin-engined Commuter and cargo transport aircraft, 10,400 lb max takeoff weight, accommodation for a crew of two and up to 15 passengers. powered by two 550-hp (410-kW) Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-20 turboprop engines.
99 Executive: Executive transport version of the 99 Airliner.
{{visible anchor|99A Airliner}}: Same as the 99 Airliner, but powered by two Pratt & Whitney PT6A-27 engines flat-rated at 550 hp.
A99A Airliner: One of a kind, 99A Airliner without wing center section tanks; this aircraft has been scrapped.
{{visible anchor|B99 Airliner}}: Improved version, 10,900 lb max takeoff weight, powered by two 680-hp (507-kW) Pratt & Whitney PT6A-27/28 engines.
B99 Executive: Executive transport version of the B99 Airliner.
C99 Commuter: Improved version, {{convert|11300|lb|abbr=on}} max takeoff weight, Pratt & Whitney PT6A-36 (engines flat rated at 715 hp)

Operators

In July 2018, 106 Beechcraft B99 were in airline service, all in the Americas,:{{Cite web|url=https://www.flightglobal.com/asset/24536|title=World Airline Census 2018|website=Flightglobal.com|language=en-GB|access-date=2018-08-27}}

55: Ameriflight
14: Alpine Air Express
10: Bemidji Airlines
10: Freight Runners Express
9: Wiggins Airways
3: Lake Clark Air Alaska
2: Flamingo Air, Hummingbird Air, InterCaribbean Airways
1: Bar XH Air, Courtesy Air, North-Wright Airways and Sky High Aviation Services
1 Heringer Táxi Aéreo Brazil

Specifications (Model 99A)

{{Aircraft specs

|ref=Green.Green, William, The Observers Book of Aircraft, Frederick Warne & Co. Ltd, 1970. {{ISBN|0-7232-0087-4}}

|prime units?=kts

|crew=1 or 2

|capacity= Normally 15 passengers (8-seat 'Business Executive' model available) / Up to {{cvt|3600|lb|0}} depending upon fuel requirements; some aircraft have a belly pod for additional baggage or cargo

|length sigfig=3

|length ft=44

|length in=6.75

|length note=

|span sigfig=3

|span ft=45

|span in=10.5

|span note=

|height sigfig=3

|height ft=14

|height in=4.333

|height note=

|wing area sqft=279.7

|wing area note=

|aspect ratio=

|airfoil=root: NACA 23018; tip: NACA 23012{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url=https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website=m-selig.ae.illinois.edu |access-date=16 April 2019}}

|empty weight lb=5533

|empty weight note=(varies depending upon equipment and configuration)

|gross weight lb=

|gross weight note=

|max takeoff weight lb=10400

|max takeoff weight note=

|fuel capacity=

|more general=

|eng1 number=2

|eng1 name=Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-20 (also -27 /-36)

|eng1 type=turboprop engines

|eng1 shp=550

|eng1 note=

|prop blade number=3

|prop name=Hartzell constant speed feathering and reversible propellers

|prop dia m=

|prop dia ft=

|prop dia in=

|prop dia note=

|max speed kts=

|max speed note=

|cruise speed kts=205

|cruise speed note=at {{cvt|10000|ft}}

|stall speed kts=

|stall speed note=

|never exceed speed kts=

|never exceed speed note=

|minimum control speed kts=

|minimum control speed note=

|range nmi=910

|range note=

|ferry range nmi=

|ferry range note=

|endurance=

|ceiling ft=26200

|ceiling note=

|climb rate ftmin=1700

|climb rate note=

|time to altitude=

|lift to drag=

|wing loading lb/sqft=

|wing loading note=

|fuel consumption lb/mi=

|power/mass=

|more performance=

|avionics=

}}

Notable accidents and incidents

In 1987, pilot Henry Dempsey survived an incident in which he was sucked out of the aircraft when he fell against a door in the hold which opened. He managed to hang on until the plane made an emergency landing and suffered only minor injuries.{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/1841f4ee7bdcca2ae6ca956d864b2e6f|title = Pilot Hangs on as Plane Door Opens in Flight|website = Associated Press}}{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1987/09/04/pilot-falls-out-clings-to-door-until-landing/e067c87b-da2f-4fc0-a663-4bb9d4a1cfdf/ |title=PILOT FALLS OUT, CLINGS TO DOOR UNTIL LANDING |date=1987-09-04 |newspaper=The Washington Post |place=Washington, D.C. |issn=0190-8286 |oclc=1330888409}}
Bar Harbor Airlines Flight 1808 was a scheduled flight from Logan International Airport to Bangor International Airport in the United States on 25 August 1985. On final approach to Auburn/Lewiston Municipal Airport, the Bar Harbor Airlines Beechcraft Model 99 crashed short of the runway, killing all six passengers and two crew on board. Among the passengers was Samantha Smith, a thirteen-year-old American schoolgirl who had become famous as a "Goodwill ambassador" to the Soviet Union and had been cast on the television show Lime Street.
Henson Airlines Flight 1517 crashed on September 23, 1985, when pilot errors led to a CFIT. {{see also|Cascade Airways#Accidents and incidents}}
Holmström Air flight, a Beechcraft 99 crashed May 8, 1989 at Oskarshamn, Southern Sweden on final approach to Oskarshamn airport. The investigation found that the accident was probably caused by the pilot's inability to compensate for the rapid nose pitch-up that occurred when the wing flaps were deployed, engines running at high power and with the plane too aft-heavy. The plane pitched sharply up, stalled and fell to the ground. The crash and subsequent fire killed all 16 onboard including the two pilots. The passengers were made up of politicians and their aides working for the National telecom planning committee as well as two young students.https://www.upi.com/Archives/1989/05/08/Swedish-commuter-plane-crashes-16-dead/9860610603200/https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-och-lagar/dokument/proposition/om-ersattning-till-efterlevande-till-vissa-omkomna_gd03108/
A Beechcraft 99 operated by Wiggins Airways crashed immediately after takeoff from Manchester–Boston Regional Airport, New Hampshire, on January 26, 2024, amid stormy winter conditions.{{Cite web |last=Toole |first=Mike |date=2024-01-26 |title=Small plane crashes near Londonderry, New Hampshire home, pilot seriously hurt - CBS Boston |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/plane-crash-londonderry-new-hampshire-nh-colonial-drive-beechcraft-99-faa/ |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=CBS News |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Accident Beechcraft C99 Commuter N53RP |url=https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/351173 |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=aviation-safety.net}}