Three initial design concepts were developed for the Model 45, including one with the Bonanza's signature V-tail, but the final design that emerged in 1948 incorporated conventional tail control surfaces for the benefit of the more conservative military[1] (featuring a relatively large unswept vertical fin that would find its way onto the Travel Air twin-engine civil aircraft almost ten years later).

Production did not begin until 1953, when Beechcraft began delivering T-34As to the United States Air Force (USAF) and similar Model B45 aircraft for export.

Production of the T-34B for the United States Navy (USN) began in 1955, this version featuring a number of changes reflecting the different requirements of the two services.

[4] After a production hiatus of almost 15 years, the T-34C Turbo-Mentor powered by a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-25 turboprop engine was developed in 1973.

[9] As the U.S. Air Force replaced the last of their T-34As at the beginning of the 1960s, their role taken over by the propeller-driven T-41 Mescalero and the T-37 Tweet primary jet trainer in UPT, those T-34As not allocated to USAF aero clubs or marked for foreign military sales or transfers were turned over to the USAF Auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol, for use as search aircraft.

[citation needed] Some time before 1990, the United States Army received six ex-U.S. Navy T-34C, used as test platforms and chase planes at Edwards Air Force Base, California and Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

The first aircraft was previously flown at the Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, where it was used for propulsion experiments involving turboprop engines.

The second T-34C was obtained in early 2005 from the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) at NAS Patuxent River, where it was due to be retired.

The main encounter with British forces occurred on 1 May 1982 when three Turbo-Mentors attacked a Royal Navy Westland Sea King helicopter in the area of Berkeley Sound but were intercepted by Royal Navy Sea Harriers flown by Lt 'Soapy' Watson and Lt Cdr 'Sharky' Ward of 801 Naval Air Squadron flying from HMS Invincible,[14][15] with one of the T-34Cs being damaged by cannon fire from Ward's aircraft.

The four T-34C-1 Turbo-Mentors continued to operate, flying a few reconnaissance missions, but were redeployed to Borbon Station where they were ultimately destroyed by the SAS Raid on Pebble Island on 15 May 1982.

[16] Although all four hulks remained on the island for a considerable length of time, eventually, 0729/(1-A)411 was recovered on 10 June 1983 and stored for future display at the Fleet Air Arm Museum.

[17] In 2004, due to a series of crashes involving in-flight structural failure during simulated combat flights, the entire US civilian fleet of T-34A/Bs was grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Via a series of Airworthiness Directives (ADs) established by or Alternate Methods of Compliance (AMOCs) negotiated with the FAA, including installation of certain, approved structural modifications to the wing spar and other repairs, the T-34A and T-34B fleet in 2011 has been restored to full flight status by FAA at the Mentor's originally designed limitations, provided each individual example is compliant with those ADs and AMOCs.

[citation needed] It was also used by aerobatic pilot Julie Clark, who flew her T-34 "Free Spirit" (registration N134JC) at air shows.