In 1966, Beechcraft introduced a higher-powered version of the Model 23 Musketeer and named it the Beechcraft 23-24 Musketeer Super III. This upgraded model had a Lycoming IO-360 fuel injected powerplant which produced 150 kW, 26 kW more than the standard Model 23 Musketeer of that year. The Model 23-24 Musketeer Super III proved the utility of the 150 kW engine in the Musketeer airframe, but the fixed gear configuration prevented using full advantage of the extra power of the injected Lycoming. The obvious solution was retracting the landing gear and this resulted in the Model 24.