Turboprops

Diamond Aircraft’s DART-450 prototype flew for the first time on Tuesday. Production will progress following the successful maiden flight, says Diamond Aircraft CEO Christian Dries. “Company chief test pilot Ingmar Mayerbuch and flight test engineer Thomas Wimmer have been so excited about the first results that certification and serial production is green-lighted,” Dries says. The […]

JetAviva, the Austin, Texas-based light jet sales and training specialist, has reached an agreement to buy Kansas Aircraft Corp., a Kansas City-area piston aircraft and turboprop sales broker, creating one of the country’s most formidable light aircraft resale firms. KAC, a former Cessna authorized dealer, was purchased three years ago by Tim and Dianne White, […]

Evektor, a Czech builder of light sport airplanes and ultralights, has flown the first production-conforming EV-55 Outback utility twin, an airplane that promises to dramatically raise the company’s profile when it enters the market. Evektor test pilots flew the EV-55 from Kunovice Airport this month for a short flight ahead of a test regimen that […]

Daher once again surprised the aviation world last week by announcing a new model of the TBM single-engine turboprop — a model that is already FAA and EASA certified. The TBM 930 was announced at a press conference at the company’s Sun ‘n Fun exhibit as the cover was taken off the new model to […]

Daher, maker of the TBM 900 single-engine turboprop, unveiled the newest model in its of line business turboprops on Tuesday. But don’t expect to be able to walk over to the Daher exhibit at Sun ‘n Fun for a gander at the new TBM 930. The latest TBM model with Garmin G3000 touch-screen avionics is […]

As Piper prepares for the market introduction of the M600 single-engine turboprop, scheduled to receive its FAA certification stamp of approval in the third quarter, the Vero Beach, Florida, company is dropping the prices and adding features to its other M-class models to make them more attractive to buyers. The Pratt & Whitney PT6A-powered M500’s […]

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance was a popular book in the ’70s, and though I’ve tried several times, I’ve never been able to penetrate more than a few dozen pages. That said, I’ve always been a proponent of keeping my rolling stock (on the ground and in the air) in good working order. Maybe […]

Daher (then named Daher-Socata) surprised the world nearly two years ago when it introduced the TBM 900, a completely redesigned version of its speedy single-engine turboprop. The new model has become a huge success and, after recently delivering the 100th TBM 900 in December, the company announced that 2015 was the second most successful year […]

Epic Aircraft completed the successful maiden flight of its first conforming prototype E1000 single-engine turboprop, code-named FT1, putting the manufacturer on track to achieve certification later this year. FT1 made its successful first flight on December 19 from the Bend Municipal Airport. After the 20-minute test hop, Epic chief pilot David Robinson reported, “The aircraft […]

It was a beautiful day. Light winds. Clear skies. Towering, snowcapped Rocky Mountain peaks surrounded the 9,000-foot runway at Eagle, Colorado, from which I was about to depart. I was at the controls of a Pilatus PC-12, a sizable single-engine turboprop built to carry thousands of pounds of people or gear. Today we were light. […]