Daher’s TBM very fast turboprop aircraft family has joined the millennium club with the rollout of its 1,000th airplane Sept. 21, 2020.
The 1,000th TBM is a TBM 940 destined for an owner in the United States, according to officials with the Tarbes, France-based manufacturer.
“The Daher group and its employees take particular pride in reaching the TBM’s 1,000 mark,” noted Didier Kayat, CEO. “We have made significant investment since integrating the TBM into Daher’s business portfolio, and now it is a major asset for our overall industrial activity.”
The number of TBMs produced since Daher’s acquisition of the aircraft product line 10 years ago has surpassed the total built throughout the program’s previous history, according to Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of Daher’s Aircraft Division.
When the TBM was launched in the 1980s, there was some aviation sector skepticism about the market attractiveness of a pressurized single-engine turboprop airplane, with certain doubts whether the initial sales goal of 600 would be attained, he added.
Beginning with the cornerstone TBM 700’s introduction in 1990, a strategy of continuous improvement has been pursued, ranging from airframe optimization and enhancement for the avionics and cabin to developments in the company’s services and support offerings, he noted.
This was underscored by Daher’s introduction of the TBM e-copilot for reduced pilot workload, including flight envelope protection, autothrottle, as well as automatic icing detection, company officials said. In 2020, Daher received certification of the HomeSafe emergency autoland system that automatically brings the aircraft to a runway touchdown if the pilot becomes incapacitated.
The TBM 900-series aircraft currently in production by Daher represent the sixth primary step for the family, and are offered in two production versions: The TBM 940, incorporating Garmin’s G3000 avionics with the new HomeSafe emergency autoland function, auto-throttle and touch screen controls; and the TBM 910, with Garmin next-generation G1000 NXi avionics technology.
Daher’s official handover of the 1,000th TBM will be made later this week at the company’s Pompano Beach, Florida, operation, with the historic aircraft received by a U.S.-based owner James A. Hislop. An experienced private pilot and investment banker, Hislop is the co-founder and managing director of two private equity investment firms. He also is involved in charitable activities, serving as a volunteer pilot with Mercy Flights Southeast, Angel Flights Northeast, and Patient Airlift Services.
“I looked at just about every airplane on the market that would fit my criteria in terms of safety, reliability, style and performance,” Hislop explained. “The TBM 940 topped the list in the areas of speed, range and payload, while also incorporating all of the safety features. It is built more to a commercial grade compared to general aviation standards, the cabin comfort is excellent, and the ‘ramp appeal’ is simply stunning.”
You can see a replay of the rollout event below: