Textron aviation provided an update to the certification progress of the single-engine turboprop Beech Denali at EAA Air Venture in Oshkosh earlier today. The aircraft is currently progressing through the final phases of flight testing, which are scheduled to be complete in October 2026. This comes ten years after the program was first introduced at Oshkosh in 2016.
Certification Progress
Once flight testing is completed, Textron will submit final flight test documentation to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for certification. So far, three flight test aircraft have accumulated more than 4,100 flight hours and 1,650 flights. The remainder of the flight test program will validate aircraft performance, systems, and operational capabilities.
“Our teams continue to deliver meaningful progress on this clean-sheet aircraft,” said Chris Hearne, senior vice president, Engineering & Programs. “The Beechcraft Denali program is advancing through the certification process very well as we complete critical flight test milestones and continue validating performance, systems and operational capability, reinforcing our confidence in the aircraft’s performance and our path to entry into service.”
The Denali program has now cleared a number of certification milestones, including stall speeds and characteristics, control and maneuvering characteristics, natural icing and ice shape evaluations, field performance, flyover noise, human factors assessments, various avionics system tests, and the first phase of function and reliability testing.
The Bottom Line
With certification expected in the 4th quarter, entry into service is expected for the first quarter of 2027. The development of this program has not been smooth, with multiple delays with engine and airframe issues since its launch in 2016. A ten- to eleven-year development program for Textron is atypical, and indicates the level of difficulties faced in development with the innovative GE Catalyst advanced turboprop engine that contains a significant portion of additive manufactured parts. That more radical design is aimed at greatly reducing engine complexity and lower maintenance costs, but has had a difficult gestation period.
It now appears that the runway is now in sight, after a very long and difficult development period. The Catalyst will provide a strong new competitor for the Pilatus PC-12, Epic 1000, and Daher TBM family of aircraft in the single engine turboprop market. Textron needs to complete certification of this program before the end of 2026, and finally appears on track to do so.
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