Beechcraft Starship

Beechcraft · United States · first flew 1986 · light aircraft

The Beechcraft Starship is a highly unconventional composite business turboprop featuring a canard layout, pusher engines, and no conventional tail, making it one of the most visually striking aircraft of the late 20th century. Scaled Composites built a proof-of-concept 85% scale model before full production.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, swept
E — Engines	2 × turboprop, wing-mounted
F — Fuselage	14.05 m fuselage
T — Tail	No tailplane

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Canard pusher turboprop with no conventional tail
All-composite construction business aircraft
Distinctive forward-swept main wing and large canard foreplanes

Unmistakable due to its canard foreplanes, aft-mounted pusher turboprops, forward-swept main wing, and complete absence of a conventional tail empennage.

Specifications

The Beechcraft Starship has a length of 14.05 m (46 ft).
It has a wingspan of 16.6 m (54 ft).
Its maximum speed is 620 km/h (385 mph).
Typical crew: 1-2 + up to 8 passengers.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

First flown in 1986, the Starship was developed with input from Burt Rutan and manufactured almost entirely from advanced composites. Despite its technological innovation, high production costs and a relatively small customer base limited sales to around 53 aircraft.

Variants

The Starship 2000 and 2000A were the main production versions with updated avionics; Beechcraft eventually bought back and scrapped most of the fleet.

Where you'll see it

Operated by private owners and some corporate flight departments primarily in the United States; most were retired and destroyed by Beechcraft to limit support liability.

Related aircraft

AircraftIQ — the aircraft field guide: 4,893 recognition guides, live overhead identification, works offline.