Rare bird sighting

3393RP

3393RP

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3393RP
Yesterday afternoon I was outside doing yardwork and a strange sounding airplane caught my attention. It was moving right along, and was flying at 8,000' give or take.

It took me a second to process what I was seeing...thought "Gee, that's a big Velocity...wait, two engines?"

It was a Starship, first one I've seen in quite a while.
 
I thought you were talking about ornithology but then I remembered we were on an aviation forum. In my defense I used to date an ornithologist and we would go birdwatching. Spotting a rare bird was a big deal. He ended up dumping me. But my husband is a billion times better than him so it’s all good.

But yes that’s a cool looking airplane, a rare sighting indeed.
 
I believe there are only 2 in captivity. The others have been destroyed.
 
According to Wikipedia, there are six left flying as of last September.
 
I worked one on approach going into Hilton Head once. Pro golfer and pilot Bill Glasson flying in for the tournament. Back then the aircraft ID was BEST. Now they use STAR.
 
Velocity173 said:
I worked one on approach going into Hilton Head once. Pro golfer and pilot Bill Glasson flying in for the tournament. Back then the aircraft ID was BEST. Now they use STAR.
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Wonder if Beech called the FAA and said we’d rather you don’t call them a BE anything anymore.
 
Saw one land right in front of me yesterday at Oshkosh. Turned everyone’s head.
 
Back in the 90s I talked my way on to one for a brief post-maintenance flight.

it was loud inside and waaaaaay cool on the outside.

the ramp-presence is unmistakable
 
Cool!

There’s one on display at the Beechcraft Heritage Museum in Tullahoma that you can tour. I recall the interior (cabin and cockpit) being just like a King Air.

And of course the obligatory photo from a few years ago of me sitting in the left seat! :D

8009E3D1-0ED7-4564-A49F-C5112A1FF2E4.jpeg
 
ateamer said:
Maybe a Piaggio? They have a unique sound.
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The Starship and Avanti look very different from the ground looking up:
Beechcraft-Starship_outline_480x420_00190425-3303-46c2-ae0e-f17e9c47e085_480x480.jpg
2010-04-11_14_28_33_Switzerland_Kloten_Kaserne_%28cropped%29.jpg
 
ateamer said:
Maybe a Piaggio? They have a unique sound.
Click to expand...

Nope, it was a Starship. The swept canard and wings are much different than the Piaggio's, as asicer's post reveals. I've never seen a Starship in flight around the DFW area or heard one on ATC. It might have been N903SC, which is registered to a Dallas LLC and based at KADS. The aircraft owner has restricted its appearance on FlightAware.

I have a good story about the first Starship I saw. It was in May 1990, and I had just arrived at KIND on a Southwest Airlines flight. I was there to attend the Indianapolis 500, a ritual that had started with my Dad in 1968, when I was eleven years old. As we taxied toward the terminal, the plane passed the Signature FBO, and on the parking ramp near the perimeter fence was a Starship. Wow! I have to check this out. After I retrieved my bag and got a rental car, I drove over to the FBO and parked.

Taking note of the registration number of the Bonanza parked next to the Starship, I went inside and approached the counter. I explained to the attendant that I had arrived earlier in the day in N2774G (or something like that) and had inadvertently left my wallet in the plane.

He smiled, nodded, politely led me to the airside door, and I walked out onto the ramp, carrying my backpack. I went over to the Starship and Bonanza, pulled out my camera, and began taking pictures of the beautiful and unusual aircraft.

It only took a couple of minutes before a rampy noticed me, went inside, and returned, trailed by the agent. He wasn't as friendly this time. :D

I mumbled a combination excuse and apology, and escaped. Seeing the plane up close was way cool. It was a beautiful example of Burt Rutan's fertile mind, and when I returned to Dallas, my pilot friends were anxious to see my spy shots.

:D :D
 
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On barnstormers today...a vari eze. But this picture stood out. Thought it was a starship but registration has me confused. Never seen the rare bird in person.large_image_1644904_1_1615484299.jpeg
 
We saw one today in Northern Michigan. From talking to the FBO, it sounds like there are currently only 2 starships flying (one in the states and one in Europe), and those two owners bought up the other 4 airframes for spare parts.
 

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Matthew Johnson said:
We saw one today in Northern Michigan. From talking to the FBO, it sounds like there are currently only 2 starships flying (one in the states and one in Europe), and those two owners bought up the other 4 airframes for spare parts.
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Is that Frankfort?
 
There was one parked at KSUS (St. Louis) for a few weeks sometime in the past year...maybe they were having some work done?
 
There was one that about 2 years ago came in and out of DAY several times. Once it broke down at DAY and it took quite some time for them to get it back up and running, needed some unobtainium.
 
time: years ago... Maybe 10 years?
"N130JM, bridgeport tower. Are you ready to go? I have a Starship on 6 mile final."
[130JM] (Me...) "Not ready. I need a few minutes here on the ground. "
Tower "remain clear of runway 29"

mad scramble for my digital camera ensues...

Crap! Dead Battery!

But I did get a lovely view of the Starship as she landed!

-Skip
 
Never got into Star Wars either. I tried (bought the Trilogy), just didn’t take. Didn’t care for Star Trek either. Oddly enough though, The Last Starfighter is one of my favorite movies.
 
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