In November 2015,
GE Aerospace announced its General Electric Advanced Turboprop (ATP) (now
General Electric Catalyst) had been selected to power the aircraft. On 23 May 2016 Textron announced the SETP performance and cabin details. In May 2017, after testing with a fuel system ground testing rig and the propeller, Textron announced it had started building static and fatigue test articles, including the aft cargo door. Flight testing was to begin in the third quarter of 2018, followed by certification in 2019. In February 2018, assembly of the first prototype was underway in Wichita. Its first flight was scheduled to occur before the end of the year. In May 2018, ground tests continued, and all major components were being fabricated, including the nose, fuselage, wings and the tail cone. Three flying prototypes were being completed for an intended
first flight scheduled for early 2019. By October 2018, the first prototypes
fuselages and
flight controls were nearly complete, and
wings were starting to be constructed towards a 2020 certification. By July 2021, the turboprop engine was to have its maiden flight in a
King Air 350 testbed aircraft in the coming months. The engine's certification was scheduled for late 2022. On November 23, 2021, the Denali made its first flight from Textron Aviation's facilities in
Wichita, Kansas. The 2-hour and 50-minute flight reached and an altitude of 15,600 feet. The certification program will use two additional flight prototypes and three ground test airframes. The second prototype first flew in mid-June 2022 and joined the test program. By May 2023, the prototypes had completed 540 flights and 1,300 flying hours. Textron confirmed the Garmin
emergency autoland feature was operating correctly, but certification was pushed back to 2025 due to certification delays in the GE Catalyst engine program. In 2023, the aircraft's equipped price was forecasted to be $6.45M. As of May 6, 2024, the Beechcraft Denali has reached key milestones, with
Textron confirming the start of its flight test phase following
FAA Type Inspection Authorization. In February 2025, the Federal Aviation Administration granted the GE Catalyst certification after more than 8,000 hours of tests, clearing the Denali for a 2026 introduction as the three prototypes gathered over 2,700 flight hours in 1,100 flights. As of September 2025, the three Denali aircraft being used for FAA certification testing had flown a combined total of 1,340 flights and 3,330 hours, with certification expected in 2026. ==Design==