Daher-Socata’s TBM 900 Brings ‘Best Year Ever’

Daher-Socata announced that the introduction of the TBM 900 single-engine turboprop translated into a 27 percent increase in sales from 2013 to 2014. Since the French airplane manufacturer's launch of the new version of the speedy turboprop last March, it delivered 51 of the airplanes before the end of the year. 2014 ended up closing out as the "best year ever in terms of TBM sales volume," the company said, with 64 orders on the books.

A majority of the airplanes, representing 78 percent of the deliveries, went to North America. South America and Europe received 10 and 8 percent with the rest of the airplanes going to the Asia-Pacific region. In all, Daher-Socata has delivered more than 700 TBMs.

Daher-Socata had secretly developed the new version of the TBM, which included a nose-to-tail redesign. Improvements to the design, which was first introduced as the TBM 700 in 1990 and upgraded to the more powerful TBM 850 in 2006, included aerodynamic optimization, including winglets; a five-blade composite propeller and redesigned spinner; a new electrical system; and improved ergonomics in the cockpit and cabin. At 330 knots, the TBM 900 is the fastest certified single-engine turboprop on the market. When the new design was announced to the world in March, the airplane had already achieved certification.

Check out our video where we fly the TBM 900.

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