The Northrop Beta was an American single-engine, all-metal, low-wing sporting monoplane built in 1931.

[1] The Beta was a two-seater with a 160 hp (119 kW) Menasco Buccaneer inline engine.

The aircraft was sold to a wealthy pilot in New York and during its delivery, it passed through Wright Field in order to allow a thorough examination by Army Air Corps Engineers as the Air Corps was still using obsolete biplanes.

After being rarely flown during 1932, the aircraft was sold to a new owner who kept it at Roosevelt Field until it was flipped over at a nearby airport.

The aircraft was repaired at the Stearman factory in Wichita and used as an experimental test platform for various flap designs until it crashed due to a wing structural failure on May 4, 1934.