1) They were an aircraft that was popular with professional types, such as Doctors and, due to the large numbers of these aircraft in the higher salary bracket several aforementioned professionals perished in their FTDK, or;
You got it in one! They were, and still are, a high performance aeroplane.
They have always been one Merc dearer than the competition, so tended to be the steed of choice of successful professionals who had the cash, or the cash flow, to buy one. Unfortunately many did not put the time into training so that their abilities as pilots were a match for the capabilities of the aeroplane. The result was that Drs made up an abnormal proportion of those unfortunate enough to meet their maker in a Bonanza.
Personally, I think Bonanza has been displaced from that niche by the Lancair.
2) They have or had a unique handling, design or maintenance issue that claimed the lives of a few of the above mentioned aircraft owners, or;
No! The V-tail is one of the nicest handling aeroplanes in the sky. However, they are quick and if you head up sh*t creek in one you will get there faster than you would in many other types.
They are very light in the controls, and virtually neutrally stable in the rolling plane. As a result, if upset in the rolling plane they will do nothing to correct the situation, unlike many other types, but will just continue to peel off until in a spiral dive.
They require constant attention when hand flown on instruments. Some say you should not fly them IFR without a functioning autopilot. I probably would not launch into hard core IMC without the AP, but have never found the V35B to be a handful when handflown IFR. I always hand fly my IR renewals.
The V-tails went through a re-certification process a number of years ago following a number of inflight failures of the tailplane. As a result an AD was issued that resulted in the leading edge of the tailplane being fixed more securely to the fuselage. None-the-less, the conclusion was that you really had to lose it and exceed the VNE by a substantial margin before the tailplane failed.
The V-tails are particularly sensitive with CofG, the V35B being the worst in this respect. It is EASY to load a V35B so that its CofG is out the rear of the envelope. As you fly off fuel, unlike many other types, the CofG does not move forward. Contrary to urban myth, in the V35B it does more rearward but will stay within the envelope until the tanks are very low. In general if it is within the envelope on TO it will be within the envelope on landing.
Although many V35Bs have 5 seats, it is effectively a 3 seater aircraft.
3) I am right off track and some prooner who knows the real reason for the name will set me straight.
Happy to!
4) Do they have rudder pedals?
Yes, but you really only need them for TO and Landing. You can roll a V-tail through a steep turn with your feet flat on the floor and the ball will stay centred throughout.
Dr 