×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Small Arms Warships & Submarines Military Ranks Military Pay Chart (2024) Special Forces
HOME
AVIATION INDEX
MODERN AIR FORCES
AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY
AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE AIRCRAFT
AIRCRAFT BY CONFLICT
AIRCRAFT BY TYPE
AIRCRAFT BY DECADE
COLD WAR AIRCRAFT
X-PLANE AIRCRAFT
Aviation / Aerospace

Beechcraft Model 38P (Lightning)


Experimental Turboprop General Aviation Aircraft [ 1982 ]



The Beechcraft Lightning was the result of several design combinations - the body of a Baron, the wings of a Bonanza, and a turboprop engine.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 12/08/2021 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

VIEW SPECIFICATIONS [+]
The utility-minded Model 38P "Lightning" was a long-nose turboprop developed by Beechcraft for the General Aviation (GA) market, appearing alongside contemporaries in the Pipe "Malibu Meridian" and the SOCATA "TBM" (both detailed elsewhere on this site). Despite showcasing extreme promise for the civilian marketplace, the design was doomed by the U.S. economic downturn that affected industry by the end of the 1980s. In the end, the aircraft was suspended from further development and ultimately cancelled in full - with just two being completed.

In the Model 38P (the "P" signifying "Pressurized"), the Beechcraft "Baron" Model 58P fuselage stood in as the base framework for this unique aircraft. Mated to the non-engine wings of a Beechcraft "Bonanza", the sleek passenger hauler was completed with a Garrett AiResearch TPE-331-9 turboprop engine at the nose. The result was a well-streamlined, high-performance GA aircraft worthy of note.

In this original configuration, the aircraft went airborne for the first time on June 14th, 1982 and successfully completed no fewer than 133 total flights. The program hit a snag, however, when it was decided to replace the original turboprop with the Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC) PT6A-40 type which delayed its return into the air for some eighteen months. In this new guise, the aircraft went airborne for the first time on March 9th, 1984 and flew into August of that year for its part in the Lightning story.

As finalized, the aircraft seated its crew of one in a side-by-side arrangement behind the long nose assembly and could carry up to five passengers in the cabin. Overall length reached 29.10 feet with a wingspan of 37.9 feet. The PT6A-40 series turboprop outputting a useful 550 to 650 horsepower to drive a five-bladed propeller unit at the nose. The mainplanes were low-mounted along the fuselage sides and sported slight sweepback. The tail unit comprised a single vertical fin and low-mounted horizontal planes. For ground-running, a retractable tricycle undercarriage was used.

In testing, the aircraft exhibited cruising speeds up to 316 miles-per-hour and could range out to 1,285 miles. Its service ceiling was rated to 25,000 feet.

After the project was suspended, it was not restarted - resulting in any customer deposits on the product being returned. One example of the Model 38P resides in good condition at the Beechcraft Heritage Museum in Tullahoma, Tennessee.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

Specifications



Beechcraft - USA
Manufacturer(s)
United States (cancelled)
Operators National flag of the United States
1982
Service Year
United States
National Origin
Cancelled
Project Status
1
Crew
2
Units


COMMERCIAL AVIATION
Used in roles serving the commercial aviation market, ferrying both passengers and goods over range.
X-PLANE
Aircraft developed for the role of prototyping, technology demonstration, or research / data collection.


WING SWEEPBACK
Mainplanes, or leading edges, features swept-back lines for enhanced high-speed performance and handling.
HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE
Can accelerate to higher speeds than average aircraft of its time.
HIGH-ALTITUDE PERFORMANCE
Can reach and operate at higher altitudes than average aircraft of its time.
EXTENDED RANGE PERFORMANCE
Capability to travel considerable distances through onboard fuel stores.
SUPER PERFORMANCE
Design covers the three all-important performance categories of speed, altitude, and range.
CREWSPACE PRESSURIZATION
Supports pressurization required at higher operating altitudes for crew survival.
ENCLOSED CREWSPACE(S)
Features partially- or wholly-enclosed crew workspaces.
RETRACTABLE UNDERCARRIAGE
Features retracting / retractable undercarriage to preserve aerodynamic efficiency.


29.9 ft
(9.12 meters)
Length
37.8 ft
(11.53 meters)
Width/Span
monoplane / low-mounted / swept-back
Mainplane Arrangement
Monoplane
Design utilizes a single primary wing mainplane; this represents the most popular modern mainplane arrangement.
Low-Mounted
Mainplanes are low-mounted along the sides of the fuselage.
Swept-Back
The planform features wing sweep back along the leading edges of the mainplane, promoting higher operating speeds.


1 x Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC) PT6A-40 turboprop engine developing 550-650 horsepower driving a five-bladed propeller unit at the nose.
Propulsion
396 mph
(638 kph | 344 knots)
Max Speed
317 mph
(510 kph | 275 knots)
Cruise Speed
+80 mph
(+128 kph | 69 knots)
Speed Difference
24,934 ft
(7,600 m | 5 miles)
Ceiling
1,286 miles
(2,070 km | 1,118 nm)
Range


MACH Regime (Sonic)
Sub
Trans
Super
Hyper
HiHyper
ReEntry
RANGES (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hi-Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: >19030


None.


Model 38P - Base Project Designation.
"Lightning" - Base Project Name.


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for Special Forces
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft

Images



1 / 3
Image of the Beechcraft Model 38P (Lightning)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
2 / 3
Image of the Beechcraft Model 38P (Lightning)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
3 / 3
Image of the Beechcraft Model 38P (Lightning)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content; site is 100% curated by humans.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons. Special Interest: RailRoad Junction, the locomotive encyclopedia.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)