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Textron brings upgrades to piston lineup

Textron Aviation on April 4 announced a range of enhancements to its “from utility to luxury” piston aircraft lineup. This includes upgrades to the Beechcraft Baron, Beechcraft Bonanza and all Cessna piston aircraft for more functionality and comfort.

The new production Beechcraft Bonanza G36 will now offer a 155-pound increase to the maximum takeoff weight, giving the aircraft a maximum useful load of 1,213 pounds in its standard configuration with six seats.

In addition to the increased gross weight, new production Bonanzas, along with Beechcraft Baron G58 aircraft, will offer three new interior schemes and a new cockpit layout with a standalone autopilot controller. New Bonanzas and Bonanzas will also include a Garmin GI 275 electronic standby, a carbon monoxide detector integrated in the Garmin avionics system, USB ports at every seat, powered headset plugs in the cockpit, and updated LED exterior lighting for improved visibility. New models of each aircraft are anticipated to be delivering in mid-2022.

New production Cessna high-wing piston aircraft will include a Garmin GI 275 electronic standby. (Photo: Textron Aviation)

Textron also explains all new-production Cessna high-wing piston aircraft will also include a Garmin GI 275 electronic standby. The standby, explains the company, modernizes the cockpit panel by eliminating three analog standby instruments and providing additional flight data. The interior of Cessna high-wing piston aircraft also feature refreshes with the addition of Alcantara inserts in the seats along with a backlit USB A/C port in the cockpit.

“These are upgrades that will truly enhance the flying experience for our customers,” said Chris Crow, vice president, Piston Sales, Textron. “Customers will experience a noticeable change when they’re inside each of these aircraft.”