With a cranked wing the flaps must be segmented into inboard and outboard sections. The wing is of the “cranked” design, meaning that the trailing edge is straight at the root and then sweeps back to mimic the sweep of the leading edge. To overcome that the Premier has large Fowler flaps that occupy most of the trailing edge of the wing. Because wing loading-the amount of weight carried by each square foot of wing area-is fundamental to stalling speed, a small wing will stall at a higher speed than a larger one.
![premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit](https://aspenavionics.com/images/cgallery/2355/165-panel-1.jpg)
There are, as always, tradeoffs, and the small, slender wing does add complexity. Additional drag control at high cruise speed comes from the 20-degree leading edge sweep that helps to control the formation of a Mach shock wave when the airplane is operating at nearly 80 percent of the speed of sound. In general, a higher aspect ratio wing with small area is lower in drag. That equals a moderately high aspect ratio of 8.6, meaning the chord is fairly narrow compared to the span. The Premier wing is quite small with only 247 square feet of area and a span of 44.5 feet. 80 maximum speed and 451-knot high-speed cruise. It is the wing, the wing to fuselage fairing, and the shaping of the aft fuselage that controls drag and gives the Premier its Mach. While the original cabin design was dramatic, perhaps even gaudy, the IA cabin is subtle and elegant, with obviously only top grade leathers, wood veneer and carpet.
![premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit](https://www.pcaviator.com/store/images/D/Vcol_beech99b10.jpg)
The environmental duct work that took up cabin space has been redesigned and offers improved temperature control, and soft light washes down the sidewalls from the new headliner. Overhead Beech created a smooth headliner without the protrusions of the original. The window openings are maximized for visibility and to enhance the spacious feeling of the cabin. Unlike some other light jets, you can sit upright without your shoulder, or your head, being squeezed inboard by the curve of the fuselage. The sidewalls are now smooth, one-piece elements that provide maximum shoulder room when seated. What Beech did is copy the best of the interior design in its other airplanes and in the competition.
#PREMIER AIRCRAFT DESIGN BEECH 99 COCKPIT FULL#
The newly designed interior in the Premier IA now takes full advantage of the potential offered by the carbon fiber fuselage.
#PREMIER AIRCRAFT DESIGN BEECH 99 COCKPIT WINDOWS#
And the window reveals that surrounded the very large cabin windows were sort of a retro automotive-inspired design that made the cabin smaller, both visually and in reality. The headliner with its lighting panels did not maximize the headroom the fuselage structure offered.
![premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit premier aircraft design beech 99 cockpit](https://img.youtube.com/vi/kO5T2PcqlEc/sddefault.jpg)
Routing of air ducts, wires, controls and other necessary items was not optimized, so they claimed usable cabin space. However, the size advantage of the Premier was ill used in the original cabin design. The cabin cross section of the Premier is actually closer to that of a conventional midsize than to the competitive light jets. The extra diameter of the circular cabin translates into an even greater advantage in cabin width, particularly at the floor level. The Premier cabin is 5 feet 5 inches high, which provides a half a foot more headroom than other light jets. Boeing is using a similar scheme in its new 787 Dreamliner. The carbon fiber fuselage probably saves some weight, but more importantly, it allows for a larger interior cross-section size for a given external dimension because the composite structure is thinner than a conventional metal fuselage. The Premier fuselage is made from carbon fiber while the wing is constructed of conventional aluminum alloys. The Premier is a pioneer as the first business jet to use carbon graphite epoxy as primary structure. The Premier’s design goals of being the fastest light jet with the largest cabin cross section were accomplished when it entered service in 2001, but it is now, with the IA version, that the Premier is hitting its stride as a mature design. It takes time to work the bugs out of most all-new airplane designs, and the Beechcraft Premier is no exception.