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Panel Planner 101: Vintage Bonanza

Of course a nose-to-tail refurbishment of a classic Beech Bonanza includes the latest avionics, but a good shop and panel planning software make it easier.

This 1960s-vintage Bonanza panel sports a clean and logical layout of the latest Garmin retrofit glass, including EIS engine display.

This month’s panel for planning comes from Boston area-based reader Bill Stevenson, who designed the new panel layout for his P35 Bonanza himself after thinking through the workflow he learned flying behind the Garmin G1000 panel in a Citation Mustang. He also scoped out every photo he could find of other glass panel retrofits in Bonanzas.

Like most all Bonanzas, this is definitely an IFR machine, and Stevenson’s missions are generally limited to the Northeast, although he occasionally flies to Florida.
“I almost always file IFR even for short flights in good weather because of the traffic density around the Boston area. I don’t typically plan to fly to IFR minimums, but am quite comfortable flying solid IFR,” he told me.
out with the old

Larry Anglisano

Editor in Chief Larry Anglisano has been a staple at Aviation Consumer since 1995. An active land, sea and glider pilot, Larry has over 30 years’ experience as an avionics repairman and flight test pilot. He’s the editorial director overseeing sister publications Aviation Safety magazine, IFR magazine and is a regular contributor to KITPLANES magazine with his Avionics Bootcamp column.