Aircraft
Bulk of Starship fleet headed to incinerator
The Beech Starship fleet is being destroyed at the behest of manufacturer Raytheon, which owns 40 of the 50 production airplanes built from 1988 to 1995.

The Beech Starship fleet is being destroyed at the behest of manufacturer Raytheon, which owns 40 of the 50 production airplanes built between 1988 and 1995. In recent weeks the Starships have been flown to Pinal Air Park in Marana, Ariz., near Tucson, and corralled at Evergreen Air Center’s heavy maintenance facility, which at press time had destroyed six airplanes by sawing them up and burning the carbon-fiber sections in an incinerator (EPA-approved, Raytheon noted). The goal is to complete the destruction of the airplanes under Raytheon control by year-end.

As befitting such an unusual initiative, Raytheon did not broadcast its intentions, and only after inquiries by AIN did the company decide, 13 days later, to acknowledge the existence of the program and issue any comment.