The Howard Super Ventura was re-christened and re-worked to become the
Howard 350 therefore becoming a more easily identifiable part of the Howard
Aero range. It is a difficult aircraft to "get a handle on" as
the name seems to have only been used as a marketing name for certain Howard
Super Ventura conversions of which some 55+ were constructed. Some 'planes
are referred to as both Howard 350 and Howard Super Ventura in official
FAA documentation. One can spot a Howard 350 by it's extended nose, picture
windows and beefy Hamilton Standard Type 24E60 props however as far as I
am aware there is NO definitive version of the Howard 350 as with so many
Lodestar/Ventura conversions.
Production in the late 1950s and early 1960s was at a rate of one conversion
per month, Howard Aero employed over 800 people on this and other projects.
First production Howard 350 flew on 1st April 1962 according to Janes
1967/1968, however I have FAA evidence that Howard 350s were in the
air as early as 1957. Some Howard 350s went on to become the basis of the
Howard 500 - the last and perhaps ultimate Howard aircraft.
The Howard 350 was very popular with the drug-smuggling community due to
its power and convenient size. Numerous types of these aircraft found themselves
on the wrong side of the law such as N730EG (5274) which crashed, killing
the crew in Mexico in April 1975. N507H(5331) was used for counter drugs
operations, perhaps for some form of sting or entrapment, in an all-black
colour scheme by the DEA in the early 1970s, the aircraft has since disappeared
with the DEA and FAA unable to explain where...
Known Howard 350 a/c: C/n Reg Date of conv. Notes 4385 N200JW Early 1960s a) 5267 N9211R Early 1960s 5274 N3031 11.57 b) 5275 N361MC 1963 5331 N507H 4.66 5336 N234P 7.58 5371 N175S 1963 5489 N4900 Circa 1957 c) 5494 N711R 2.65 5591 N191N 4.62 5598 N16777 ? d) 5696 N9221R Early 1960s 5700 N350S 6.63 5705 N685 Early 1960s. e) 5891 N511U Late 1961 5892 N510R 3.65 f) 5894 N236R Late 1950s 5988 N350K 4.62 ???? N757N ? g)Notes