From Pioneering Turboprop to Timeless Performer: The TBM 700’s Lasting Legacy

The open cabin door and airstair beckoned. On a cloudless July morning in 2014, with temperatures rising steadily through the 80s, this inviting sight drew me and my two sons, aged 10 and 7, from the comfortable shade of a hangar and onto the sun-drenched ramp for a closer look.

We had arrived early to a major fly-in at Plymouth Municipal Airport (KPYM) in Massachusetts with plans to check out the new aircraft on display ahead of the crowd.

We headed straight for the aforementioned airstair, which belonged to the then-new TBM 900 turboprop single. We were blocked, though, by a velvet rope that stretched across the passenger access door. We would not have the pleasure of trying out the aircraft’s leather upholstery, though we could crane our necks over the barrier for a whiff of its beautiful interior—aviation’s version of the new-car aroma—and a glimpse of its advanced glass panel.

A decade later, when I flew to Bar Harbor, Maine (KBHB), with one of my sons, the ground crew guided us to a parking space next to a gleaming TBM. My son still recognized it. “Wow, isn’t that the plane we checked out at that fly-in?” A “wow” from the teenager is the highest praise.

The TBM family of fast turbines have long been objects of desire among general aviation pilots. Their attractive design, precise fit and finish, and most of all, class-leading performance, have impressed ever since the original TBM 700 debuted in 1990. If the first model was aviation’s equivalent of an automotive hot rod—essentially a small vehicle with a big, powerful engine—then later versions, such as the 960 and 980, are more like high-tech supercars from Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Bugatti.

Having long held the title of fastest single-engine GA aircraft, the TBM series has little left to prove after largely debunking the theory that speed does not matter all that much to private pilots. We have all heard the argument that a few extra knots of cruise speed on a typical cross-country trip results in an arrival time just a few minutes earlier than the slower aircraft.

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That might be true, sometimes, when pilots of Beechcraft Bonanzas, Piper Comanches, and other piston singles are fretting over 5-10 knots while flight planning for 200 nm excursions. For turbine drivers, the differences can be far more significant, and that’s where the TBM’s advantage becomes clear. From the 700 onward, the latest TBM has consistently been at least 30 ktas faster in maximum cruise speed than its nearest competitor. As pilots will tell you, emphatically, a difference of 30 or even 20 ktas matters a lot, especially over the longer legs turbine aircraft typically fly.

Unlikely Origins

The TBM 700 is the ancestor of today’s TBM 900 series, including the latest TBM 980, introduced in January. The 700’s origin story, in turn, began with the Mooney Aircraft Co. and its legendary designer, Roy LoPresti, in the early 1980s.

Mooney was working on a pressurized piston single prototype named the 301 to compete with Cessna’s P210 Centurion and with similar pressurized models in development at Piper and Beechcraft. In keeping with the Mooney’s longtime naming tradition, the 301 was designed to have a top speed of 301 mph, or about 262 ktas, which was stunning performance for a piston single at the time.

The airplane first flew in 1983, with LoPresti at the controls, and underwent an extensive and promising testing program. In keeping with a less-flattering tradition at Mooney, though, the company was moving through a succession of owners and, strapped for cash, needed help to continue development toward FAA certification of the complex, ambitious aircraft.

There was a lot going on in Mooney’s corporate life at the time, and its story often reads like an old soap opera teleplay with a particularly interesting cast of characters. For example, we had LoPresti, who flew bombers in the Korean War, worked as a test pilot and, during a long stint at Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp., designed or redesigned vehicles ranging from the Grumman AA-5 Tiger to the lunar landing module Eagle.

Into the act came Armand Rivard, owner of Lake Aircraft, and Alexandre Couvelaire, a Mooney dealer based in Paris who also founded charter airline Euralair and was a former French Air Force pilot. Soon a partnership between French aerospace company Aérospatiale and general aviation aircraft manufacturer SOCATA joined Mooney in a project to develop the 301 into a faster, larger turbine-powered single that could serve a perceived market niche.

The effort continued as TBM International, with “TB” standing for Tarbes, the French town where SOCATA, now Daher, is based, while the “M” is for Mooney. By the late 1980s the prototype TBM 700 was flying and the production version reached the market in 1990.

Following years of development and alterations to meet certain performance goals, it was difficult to spot elements of the Mooney 301 in the TBM 700. Certain parts, however, including the vertical tail, tapered wing, cabin windows, and wraparound windshield hint at a family resemblance. The many changes and tweaks made to the prototype, and its drawn-out, sometimes bumpy development process, would wind up paying off.

Ending a Lost Decade

Mooney eventually dropped out of the partnership with SOCATA, and in hindsight it is easy to say the company should have stayed the course, because the 700 caused a lasting sensation. Its arrival helped breathe new life into GA following the lost decade of the 1980s. What pilots remember about the era is the shutdown of piston aircraft production at Cessna and Piper, and other manufacturers cutting back to a trickle or closing up shop.

On the local level it was a period of airport closures, especially at small strips frequented by piston flyers in search of training, maintenance, or the $100 hamburger. As suburbs grew, sprawling into what used to be rural farmland, it became increasingly clear that land ideally suited for runways, ramps, and hangars was of more monetary value to developers.

Advancement in GA did not go away completely, as Cessna rolled out the 208 Caravan utility aircraft in late summer of 1984. Though unpressurized and designed mainly for cargo and commercial use, the Caravan showed there was hope for turbine singles—an idea that had been much in doubt.

Missed Opportunities

Unfortunately for many turboprop projects in the works during the early 1980s, acceptance of turbine singles and economic recovery spread too slowly. Cessna, already successful with its pressurized P210 Centurion, test-flew a turbine version called the Prop Jet Centurion 250, powered by an Allison engine, in 1984 but canceled the project as the company wound down overall production of small piston aircraft.

Beechcraft’s Lightning, perhaps a lesser-known turbine contender, was short-lived but impressive. Aircraft companies have a tradition of mixing parts from existing models to conceive new ones, and the Lightning was a prime example. Imagine the fuselage of the Baron 58 light twin mated to the wing of a B36TC Bonanza (a wing borrowed from the Baron to enhance the turbo Bonanza’s high-altitude performance). Then hang a Garrett engine on the nose, and you have a beautiful turbine single with a 275 ktas cruise at 25,000 feet.

Today the Lightning might sound like an obvious winner, but the economic environment at the time, which was driving some companies to cut back GA operations, made it difficult to make business cases for the potential wave of new turboprop singles and other innovative projects. Several promising prototypes that came of age during the early 1980s, such as the Gulfstream Peregrine, a small single-engine business jet, and the OMAC Laser 300, a turboprop
canard, also failed to make the jump to production. At Beechcraft, the Lightning was further slowed by internal conflicts between advocates for Garrett and Pratt & Whitney engines.

Successful Survivor

A stunning 300-knot maximum cruise speed and lack of close competition helped the TBM 700 establish itself during the 1990s and into the early 2000s. The model was in production for 15 years, during which it developed from the original 700A through 700B and 700C2 models. Pilots familiar with the different models say the 700C2 is the sweet spot, maintaining the best-in-class speed while boosting payload and addressing other perceived weaknesses in the earlier models.

Joe Casey, founder of Casey Aviation, an aviation services company in Diboll, Texas, said the C2 is the “golden child” of the TBM 700 series, mainly because of its higher payload, improved range, and beefed-up structure to handle the extra weight. The C2’s maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) stands at 7,394 pounds, up from 6,579 for the 700A. 

“Essentially, the 700C2 is a lot like a TBM 850 without the power increase,” Casey said. “That means you can actually load it with five people, fill the tanks, and fly 1,000 nm.”

Casey also noted that those who want the 850’s power without stepping up to the newer model can get the same 850 hp PT6A-66D engine installed in the C2 through Blackhawk Aerospace’s STC engine upgrade. The TBM 700 has been succeeded by the 850 and the 900 series right up to the 980 that just entered service and has a maximum cruise speed of 330 ktas and range of 1,730 nm. For many buyers, the 700 remains attractive because it still outperforms other turbine singles at a lower price than newer TBM models. There are potential hazards or regular maintenance issues that might affect the older aircraft, making them surprisingly expensive to operate.

Assistance from a type expert is valuable when shopping for any aircraft, but especially so for a turbine. Maintenance schedules tend to be more complex, more regimented, and certainly more expensive than what piston pilots have experienced. Finding a solid airplane with features that match the pilot’s needs can make the difference in long-term satisfaction with the purchase. Now brace for training.

Higher Level of Training

Perhaps the biggest adjustment a piston pilot has to make when transitioning to a turboprop is the amount of training required to maintain currency, not just in your own judgment but in that of your insurance carrier. Insurers often require intensive training when you acquire the aircraft plus specific recurrent training every two years, which can be a departure from the easygoing biennial flight reviews that many of us have come to expect.

After initial training and insurance approval, the best thing a piston pilot can do after acquiring a TBM 700 is to fly it often. We all know pilots who fly sporadically at times, often letting weeks pass between flights. That simply will not work with the TBM. The upgrade in performance, in many cases, demands that pilots up their game.

“If you aren’t going to fly at least 100 hours a year, do not buy this airplane. It’s as simple as that,” said Casey, who has logged thousands of hours training pilots transitioning from piston aircraft to turbines, including the full range of TBM models.

Casey said the airplane flies a lot faster than pilots are used to, and that speed, combined with complex systems, can make it easy to fall behind the airplane. Things happen fast at 250-300 ktas, so pilots need to think many miles ahead to remain comfortably in control.

“When a pilot comes in for recurrent training after flying for, say, 50 hours in the past year, I know that we are in for a very poor session,” Casey said. “When you don’t fly the TBM often enough, you wind up pushing the wrong buttons and forgetting to do things.”

Satisfaction

According to pilots, one thing the TBM will not do is disappoint. 

When flown and maintained properly, the TBM outperforms most other propeller-driven aircraft and even a few jets. For seasoned pilots of piston singles or even twins, moving to the TBM 700, particularly the 700C2, is certain to be an upgrade in performance and efficiency.

After years of traveling 150-175 ktas, adding 100 ktas to your cruise speed in addition to a roomy, pressurized cabin and robust airframe will make family travel and business trips a lot more efficient and enjoyable. The TBM 700 will also substantiate many of the claims that pilots like to make, sometimes without sufficient evidence.

For many flights, your door-to-door travel time really will be shorter than if you had flown via the airlines. Your family probably will prefer to fly with you at the controls than in the cramped seats of a 737.

So when other pilots talk about ways in which their airplanes compare favorably with yours, you can confidently say, “but the TBM is faster.”

This feature first appeared in the June Ultimate Issue 971 of the FLYING print edition.