The prototype Beech 55 Baron first flew more than 42 years ago, and since then Beech has sold an impressive 6,500 examples of this classic light twin. During this time, the Baron has been constantly improved and updated, so it was a real pleasure to recently fly the latest model with Raytheon's Bob La Ferriere. As Bob and I walked out to the Baron, standing alone on the ramp at Tampa International airport in Florida, I instantly noticed how stylish this aircraft looked. Some aeroplanes just reek of class and the Baron has it by the bucket-load, then as Bob and I began the pre-flight I quickly began to appreciate why the Baron is held in such high regard. Regular readers will already be aware that I have a high opinion of Beechcraft's build quality (see Today's Pilot, February 2002) and in this respect the Baron certainly did not disappoint.

Almost immediately it became apparent that, just like the Bonanza, this is an aircraft that has been built to a specification, not a price. The overall standard of workmanship really is excellent. Furthermore, being an older design, the Baron includes several features that I prefer over some of those in the very modern designs that I've flown recently. For example, a feature that has been noticeable by its absence on some contemporary aircraft is a DV panel. The Baron has a DV panel; it's a good size and is ideally situated to the pilot's left.
Overall, the pre-flight inspection revealed no surprises. This aircraft is entirely conventional in both design and construction; with perhaps the only external feature of note being the exceptionally high build quality. Take a (metaphorical) peek under the wing skins though, and you'll find that wing construction is slightly unusual double spar from wing root to wing tip, the only aircraft in this class to be so designed. This makes the wing unusually strong.

Access to the cabin is via the large double doors on the starboard side. The cabin is essentially the same as for the A36 Bonanza and shares many of the Bonanza's excellent design features. Therefore, not only do the interior lights come on automatically when the doors are opened but also a small, thoughtfully located, light illuminates the step by the door. With its luxurious hardwood panelling and fold-out table, the cabin interior is extremely plush and also offers a number of different options for passengers and cargo. It can seat up to six in club-style seating, although the comfortable leather seats can be easily reconfigured so that all six face forward. A cargo net makes it possible to carry up to 400lb in the aft cabin although to do this the two rearmost seats have to be removed. With Ken Delve and a Raytheon mechanic ensconced in the cabin, in order to increase the Baron's weight to a more representative load, I made my way to the cockpit.

Entry to the cockpit is provided by a good-sized door on the starboard side, and having adjusted and locked the very comfortable seat, I began to familiarise myself with the instruments and controls. Some years ago I scrounged a trip in an early-model Baron and was profoundly underwhelmed by its cockpit layout. Quite simply, it was awful, with instruments seemingly dropped onto the panel wherever there was room, and a huge, clunky cross beam which carried the control yokes (and also necessitated mounting the power quadrant uncomfortably high). However, there were even worse features for, ergonomic horror of horrors, the cockpit featured a non-standard arrangement for both the power quadrant and the controls for the flaps and undercarriage. Not only was the undercarriage lever to the right of the power quadrant, with the flap switch to the left (the reverse of accepted convention) but the power quadrant also carried the throttles in the centre with the prop control levers nearest the pilot!

Fortunately, in 1984 somebody at Beech realised that being out of step with the rest of the aviation world probably wasn't the greatest idea, and the cockpit enjoyed a fundamental redesign, to the point that these days it is as good a cockpit as any other light twin that I've flown and is probably better than most. In fact, in common with many other facets of the Baron, it shares a high degree of commonality with the Bonanza. I imagine that this simple fact must be looked upon in a very favourable light by anyone thinking about moving up from their Bonanza to a piston twin.

The panel displays the instruments and associated aircraft systems in a neat, well-ordered arrangement, even though (and rather unusually these days) it relies heavily on analogue presentations. As usual, the six primary flight instruments are located directly in front of the pilot, with two orderly vertical columns consisting of five pairs of engine gauges to the right. From top to bottom these display engine manifold pressures, rpms and fuel flows, with the bottom two gauges showing (respectively) exhaust gas and cylinder head temperatures, and oil pressure and temperature. I liked this arrangement a lot, as it is obvious which instrument stack is monitoring which engine. A neat propeller synchroniser is located in the centre of the manifold pressure and rpm gauges, while built into the glare shield is an annunciator panel.

Overall, I thought that the instrument panel was very well laid out all the switches are clearly labelled, logically divided into sub-groups and easy to both see and reach. The undercarriage knob, flap switch, parking brake and fuel selector valves all fell nicely to hand, as did the plethora of circuit breakers. These are logically arranged, with most of them to the left of the pilot's elbow, while the avionics breakers are located beneath the co-pilot's panel. The only two aspects of the panel that I found to be less than ideal were the old-style three-pointer altimeter (which is not as easy to interpret as the more modern single-pointer and rotating drum instrument) and the fact that pressure pumps are still used to power some of the gyros. Personally,

I think that electric-powered gyros are more reliable than pneumatic ones and (particularly as the Baron's twin engines obviously mean that the aircraft is fitted with dual alternators), I would have thought that an all-electric panel would have been the way to go.

I was pleased to note that the alternators are gear driven, not belt driven, and furthermore that the aircraft is fitted with two batteries. In fact, as the Baron is fitted with such a capable, well-designed electrical system, I found the decision to stick with pressure pumps even more incomprehensible! The avionics stack consists of a pair of Garmin GPS Nav/Comms, a GNS 530 and a GNS 430, and also includes a Shadin fuel/air data computer, a KFC 225 autopilot, and a very comprehensive audio control system. To the right of the avionics centre stack is a large, full-colour Honeywell weather radar with a range of up to 240nm. A KT 76C transponder is located directly above it.

The comfortable control yoke bristles with buttons, which have a wide variety of functions, including pitch trim, autopilot interrupt and disconnect, transponder ident (instead of reaching for the transponder!), OAT and compass lights, Stormscope clear, and of course PTT. A very useful feature is that the avionics systems have the ability to digitally play back the previous minute's worth of incoming radio transmission by simply pressing a button on the control yoke. This is a real boon for someone like me, who tends to listen at about the same speed as they talk (ie substantially slower than your average air traffic controller!)

At the base of the avionics stack we find dual fuel gauges, and also a prop amp gauge, a pressure gauge for the pneumatic de-icing boots, dual alternator load meters and a bus voltmeter. Below these gauges is a large centre pedestal which carries the power control quadrant and also the pitch trim wheel and indicator, aileron and rudder trim knobs and indicators, as well as the cowl flap controls. Everything was very easy to both see and reach, and while you might think that that would be the norm, you'd be mistaken! Some aircraft that I've flown have had controls, dials and indicators scattered all over the place!

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