Silhouette traced from a photo by James from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire · CC BY-SA 2.0
Swearingen · Turboprop
Merlin IIA / IIB
The first production turbine Merlins: the IIA used Pratt & Whitney engines, and the IIB switched to Garrett engines in 1968.
The Merlin IIB gives you about 256 kt and a well-pressurized cabin, but it is an orphan: about 123 were built, one was for sale in October 2026, and full tanks leave only about 175 lb for passengers.
Buy it if
You want a fast pressurized twin for two to four people on 200 to 700 nm trips, have a Merlin-savvy shop nearby, and accept that parts, training and resale take extra effort.
Skip it if
You need to carry six people and bags beyond about 600 nm, want simulator-based training, or want an aircraft you can resell quickly; a King Air 90-series or a later Merlin fits better.
Biggest compromise
Payload. The 8,500 lb zero-fuel limit (the most it may weigh before fuel is added) caps passengers and bags at roughly 1,200 lb with one pilot, and filling all 386 gallons leaves only about 175 lb.
The numbers that matter
What it costs per year
$539K
at 300 hrs · one professional pilot
How far it flies
1,550 nm
600–800 nm with passengers
How fast
256 kt
high-speed cruise
Seats
6
6 typical, up to 7 passengers
Pilots needed
1
Commonly flown by one pilot; insurers charge owner-pilots more than professional crews.
Price
What one costs to buy
Typical asking price
$0
Other sites
Priced vs call
with a price / call for price
The one Merlin IIB listed in October 2026 shows no price. The later, larger Merlin IIIB was asking $665,000 to $770,000.
Price vs its family and alternatives
Scroll to explore · select a jet for details
For sale now
None listed right now
Cost to own
What it costs per year to run
300hours / year
Per year
Per flight hour
Estimate — your operator will quote actual numbers.
Fuel, airframe maintenance, engine overhaul reserve and propeller reserve and trip costs rise as you fly more. One professional pilot, recurrent training, hangar, insurance and subscriptions and databases stay the same however much you fly.
Where the money goes
- One professional pilot$86,25016%
- Recurrent training$11,5002%
- Hangar$30,0006%
- Insurance$13,5003%
- Subscriptions and databases$8,5002%
- Fuel$191,02535%
- Airframe maintenance$135,00025%
- Engine overhaul reserve$53,25010%
- Propeller reserve and trip costs$10,0002%
Fuel is the biggest single cost at 35% of the total.
The JetGrade
58 out of 100 — Well below its class
Peer group: King Air B90, King Air 90 / A90, Mitsubishi MU-2 short body, Aero / Turbo Commander 680T / 680V / 680W / 681, Piper Cheyenne II
Seven categories at a glance
- - - 70 = typical— This aircraft
Strongest on speed & trip time, weakest on reliability & support.
Grades are editorial opinions about the model, not any specific aircraft. Sponsors and affiliates have no input. Reviewed 2026-10-08.
Where it flies
Sample trips and reach
Typical trips on a map
Nonstop
Depends on weight or weather
Fuel stop likely
1 of 6 sample trips are comfortable nonstops.
Sample flight times
- 1.3 hr
Carlsbad → Las Vegas
205 nm · Short hop, well within range
- 3.1 hr
Carlsbad → Aspen
625 nm · Mountain airport; check weight, weather and terrain
- 3.6 hr
Santa Ana → San José del Cabo
765 nm · Near the four-passenger limit; lighter loads or calm winds
- 4.5 hr
Teterboro → West Palm Beach
900 nm · Beyond four-passenger range; plan one stop
- 5.7 hr
Dallas → Teterboro
1,190 nm · One stop, typically in the Southeast or Midwest
- 10.1 hr
Carlsbad → Teterboro
2,100 nm · Two stops across the country
Lineage
What came before and after
Swearingen Excalibur (Queen Air conversion)
Swearingen's modified Beech Queen Air; it lent the Merlin its wing and tail.
1966–1972
Merlin IIA / IIB
New pressurized fuselage on Queen Air wings, with turbine power.
What changed from the Swearingen Excalibur (Queen Air conversion)
- New pressurized fuselage and vertical fin, built around Queen Air wings and horizontal tail.
- Turbines replaced pistons: 550 shp PT6A-20s on the IIA, then 665 shp Garretts on the IIB.
- Twin Bonanza landing gear, with a single wheel on each leg.
- IIB cabin pressurized to 7 psi, about a 7,400 ft cabin at 31,000 ft.
- IIB maximum takeoff weight rose to 10,000 lb, from 9,300 to 9,800 lb on the IIA.
Size and cabin
How big it is, inside and out
Outside
Silhouette · scaled to length
Length
Wingspan
Height
Inside the cabin
Cabin length
Width
Height
Compare
How it stacks up
This aircraft
Merlin IIA / IIB
- JetGrade
- 58
- Cost per year
- $539K
- Range
- 1,550 nm
- Speed
- 256 kt
- Seats
- 6
- Cabin length
- 10′ 8″
- Pilots
- 1
- Years built
- 1966–1972
← Before
Swearingen Excalibur (Queen Air conversion)
Not yet graded
After →
- JetGrade
- 66
- Cost per year
- $582K
- Range
- 1,710 nm
- Speed
- 283 kt
- Seats
- 6
- Cabin length
- 17′ 5″
- Pilots
- 1
- Years built
- 1970–1978
Alternative
- JetGrade
- 63
- Cost per year
- $512K
- Range
- 1,250 nm
- Speed
- 225 kt
- Seats
- 5
- Cabin length
- 12′ 4″
- Pilots
- 1
- Years built
- 1968–1970
- King Air B90 instead: A similar-era pressurized twin with Pratt & Whitney engines and a much larger fleet, which makes parts, training and resale easier.
- Merlin III / IIIA instead: The next Merlin: a cabin about 25 in longer, 262 more gallons of fuel, twin-wheel landing gear and 840 shp Garrett engines.
Gold marks the best figure in each row.
Owning one
What to know before you buy
Engines & inspections
2 × Garrett AiResearch TPE331-1-151G (IIB); Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-20 (IIA) · 665 shp each
No APUEngine hours until overhaul
- Windshield inspection directive · 100 hr
- Power lever linkage directive · 100 hr
- Forward bulkhead inspection directive · 1,000 hr
- Engine hot section inspection · 1,800 hr
- Propeller overhaul · 3,000 hr
- Engine overhaul · 5,400 hr
- Aileron chain directive · 10,000 hr
We found no engine program for these early Garrett engines. Owners usually set money aside each hour for hot section inspections and overhauls.
Known issues
Icing flameout history
Both engines have flamed out in ice; an FAA directive required automatic ignition and flight manual changes. Confirm both are done.
Payload versus fuel
Weight limits mean full tanks leave about 175 lb for passengers; weigh the aircraft before you buy.
Heated windshield directive
Windshields need repeat checks every 150 to 50 hours; the FAA estimated a replacement at about $17,500 each.
Pre-buy checklist
0 of 9 checked
Ontic, a parts and support company, now holds the type certificate. Garrett engine parts are still sold, but FlightSafety offers no course for this model and only a few shops specialize in early Merlins.
Review
The full review
Strengths
- Maximum cruise of about 256 kt from two 665 shp Garrett engines.
- Pressurized to 7 psi, holding about a 7,400 ft cabin at its 31,000 ft ceiling.
- A round cabin 62 in wide, with the toilet behind a rear partition in many interiors.
Limitations
- Full tanks leave only about 175 lb of payload; four passengers cut range to about 800 nm.
- Only about 123 were built, and just one was listed for sale in October 2026.
- Repeat inspections: heated windshields every 150 to 50 hours and the forward pressure bulkhead every 1,000 hours.
The Merlin IIA and IIB were Ed Swearingen's first production turboprops and the start of the line that led to the Merlin III, the Merlin IV and the Metro commuter airliner. Swearingen built a new round, pressurized fuselage and mated it to Beech Queen Air wings and tail and Twin Bonanza landing gear. The IIA, certified in July 1966, used two 550 shp Pratt & Whitney PT6A-20 engines, and about 36 were built. The IIB followed in June 1968 with two 665 shp Garrett TPE331-1 engines, and 87 were delivered before the Merlin III took over in 1972. This page is built around the IIB, the more common version.
Pilot's take
From the left seat the Merlin IIB is a 1960s airplane with turbine power. The Garrett engines are single-shaft designs, so starts need care to avoid an over-temperature, and many crews use a ground power cart. There is no autofeather: negative torque sensing cuts drag after a failure, but the pilot still has to feather the propeller, so engine-out practice matters. Fuel quantity deserves cross-checking, because several past accidents began with fuel exhaustion. The IIB is approved for icing, yet an FAA directive added automatic ignition after both engines quit in ice. It rewards pilots who train on type every year.
Who this is for
A hands-on owner-pilot or small operator who flies two to four people on regional trips, values speed and cabin pressure over payload, and has access to a shop that already maintains Merlins or Garrett-powered turboprops.
Ask about this aircraft
Answers come only from our research file on the Merlin IIA / IIB.
Your earlier questionsOwners
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