Current Beech 18 Operators

[RedGuy]

Don't know who was running it but I saw a turbine volpar Beech 18 pick up freight out of YIP the other day. That's the first turbine twin beech I've seen fly in about a decade.

 

[pilotyip]

We had a BE-18 T with tricycle gear come through YIP this week

 

[Tailwheelman]

I'm the only twin beech driver left at Phoenix Air Transport. Still operating one on nightly newspaper runs around the southwest.

Monarch air and Aztec Airways down in FL still run some. Nord Aviation in Santa Teresa, NM still has a couple (one used to be ours N9375Y).

Catalina Flying boats sold the last of theirs just recently but still runs the DC-3's and the caravan.

I delivered one to Opa Locka (N18R) from Long Beach but I can't remember the name of the outfit. I think it may have been island airways or something like that.

 

[Tailwheelman]

You may want to try posting at Beech18.net. I post there quite a bit and there are a lot of old 18 dogs on there. I also see some guys posting that still run freight in 18's. They may be able to help.

 

[vballindaytona]

some guy in el paso named steve runs his own 135 cargo business and has for some while. nice guy. has 2 of them, have seen him hiring in the past.

 

[Swass]

There's one doing a nightly UPS run from Great Bend, KS GBD to ICT. Don't recall the company name though, think they're based at GUY?

Saw him fly out this morning, in fact I see him quite regularly. It's pretty cool to see, sweet plane.

 

[dickburns]

Yeah the older gentleman in elp runs those two silver colored -18s with turbines and trike gear, only one i've seen around. I've run into him around the country so he does go long distance from a time to time.

 

[cherry20's]

I think Phillips in Del Rio, TX still runs a couple of them.

 

[Ill Mitch]

I'm the only twin beech driver left at Phoenix Air Transport. Still operating one on nightly newspaper runs around the southwest.

Monarch air and Aztec Airways down in FL still run some. Nord Aviation in Santa Teresa, NM still has a couple (one used to be ours N9375Y).

Catalina Flying boats sold the last of theirs just recently but still runs the DC-3's and the caravan.

I delivered one to Opa Locka (N18R) from Long Beach but I can't remember the name of the outfit. I think it may have been island airways or something like that.

18R...I liked that airplane.
Is RB still with Flying Boats?

 

[Publishers]

There are several at OPF flying freight and one that passes through that has been totally refurbished and used as a corporate aircraft.

 

[msw]

How old is the oldest Beech 18 that is still flying?

I find it amazing that any are still flying. I flew them as a 19 year old 135 pilot in New England in 1972, I think the aircraft we flew were actually old military ones (C-45's? Can't for sure remember the designation, been too long....) and they were over 25 years old at that time! Anyone know how old the oldest one still flying is?

 

[pilotyip]

Navy designation

I find it amazing that any are still flying. I flew them as a 19 year old 135 pilot in New England in 1972, I think the aircraft we flew were actually old military ones (C-45's? Can't for sure remember the designation, been too long....) and they were over 25 years old at that time! Anyone know how old the oldest one still flying is?

USN called them SNB's (Secret Navy Bomber), that was the joke at Saufley field in 1966. Actually SNB stood for Student Navigation Beechcraft, I think

 

[skywav8r]

For years Methow Aviation ran Beech 18's outta Boeing Field. They had the UPS contract hitting Wenatchee, Moses Lake, Spokane, Everett, and some other places. Some maintenance was done in Ephrata, Wa. The Ephrata hangar occasionally had their C-46 show up. I believe that was usually up in Alaska. Not sure if Methow is still around though. I actually got hired by Methow while sitting in Uncle Mo's watering hole drinking a pitcher of beer with the owner (Hugh). (Uncle Mo's sits at the north end just off the runway at Boeing field....last I heard it was now called Planet Georgetown) I was also hired by Airpac the same week and chose them instead. I did get to fly the Beech once. It was the "Bumble Beech" that was seen in the movie "Surviving the Game". When flying that plane it wasn't a matter of if you'd get an engine failure but when it would happen. Of course all the guys I knew had it happen over the cascades at night in the ice....I hate murphy's law!!! Here is a linky to the Beech 18 Census
http://www.oldprops.ukhome.net/Beech 18 USA Census.html

Methow had:
N9001 aka Bumble Beech
N42D
N251K
N93CA
N48K
N228A
N250RP
N9210

One summer years ago I was watching a new-hire pilot putting oil in the right engine. The training captain and I were in the FBO watching her spill oil on her hands. She looked at her hands with a confused look on her face that said "what should I do with this oil?" Instead of wiping her hands on her shorts like the rest of us, she chose her legs. Yup, she rubbed the oil on her legs, then layed out on the wing and soaked up some sun rays. By the way, she didn't make it through training....something to do with judgement!!!! Round engines are cool.

 

[Goffer]

Saw a BE-18 lost on the ground in Kona, HI last week. It nearly clipped an R-22 that belonged to the Mauna Loa School. Whoops.