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Flight Review:
TBM 930
Often, their first real business airplane is a Bonanza, Mooney, Saratoga, or Cirrus. Next, they might move up to a Malibu, Merid- ian, or Centurion. Once they make it to this point, the pinnacle of the owner-flown world, they will likely look – no, not look – they will gaze longingly at a TBM 900 series. Why? The TBM 900 series is at the top of the single-engine turbine market. Any aircraft offering a combination of speed and range that exceeds a TBM 900 series will require the logistical complexity of hiring professional pilots (usually two or more) and will be an inefficient fuel gulper. Neither of those situations jives with why an owner-pilot climbed the single-engine turbine ladder in the first place.
The TBM has been around since the early 90’s and quickly carved a niche in the single-engine turbine world. The company’s original TBM 700 is a fine airplane, but it wasn’t long before it became apparent that more payload and speed were desired. In the early 2000’s, the TBM 700C2 hit the market boasting a much better useful load, and soon after the TBM 850 appeared with added speed. The latter TBM 850’s achieved the G1000 avionics upgrade, but the complete package was made available with the arrival of the speedy TBM 900 series. Today, Daher offers buyers the TBM 910 (Garmin G1000) and the TBM 930 (Garmin G3000).
In October, I had the chance to fly the latest TBM 930 model when David Crockett flew to my home airport, Cherokee County Airport in Jacksonville, Texas (KJSO). No, I am not referring to the Alamo hero and “king of the wild frontier.” David is a vastly experienced and super knowledgeable TBM guru from Cutter Aviation in San Antonio. When he arrived in the 930, so did plenty of others from about the airport. Photographer Clint Goff and pilot Jimmy Stewart arrived to coordinate the aerial flight, and following them were other gawkers from KJSO just interested in seeing the gorgeous aircraft. Luckily, the dreary morning gave way to a beautiful afternoon, which afforded us the chance to get plenty of aerial shots as well as put the TBM 930 through its paces.
In a nutshell, my overall impressions of the TBM 930 are: 1) It’s a complete package 2) The airplane is unabashedly gorgeous 3) I cannot fathom how they are going to further improve upon this model. The 930 is not a reinvention of the TBM series of airplanes, but it is the version with all the bells and whistles Daher could think to include. Of all of the TBMs, it is the fastest, goes the farthest, and offers the most technologically-advanced avionics and every creature-comfort available. Daher created a thing of functional beauty.
December 2018
TWIN & TURBINE • 15
PHOTO COURTESY OF CLINT GOFF