New Paint Scheme for EADS Socata’s 2008 TBM 850 is Introduced at the Sun ’n Fun Fly-In

EADS Socata is unveiling a new paint scheme for its TBM 850 Very Fast Turboprop with a special display at this week’s Sun ’n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Florida.

“Sun ’n Fun traditionally heralds the start-up of a year’s aviation gatherings, and it is the best venue to introduce our 2008 TBM 850 to the general public,” explained Nicolas Chabbert, the president of EADS Socata North America. “This follows a series of exclusive TBM 850 events specifically for our customers – and to catch crowd’s eye, we’re now introducing a new paint scheme to highlight the lines of our Very Fast Turboprop.”

EADS Socata also has created a TBM 850 logo as a distinctive identity for the Model 2008 version. “While our new look underscores the TBM 850 2008’s speed and performance, the best of this new business aircraft is on the inside,” Chabbert added.

Upgrades in the 2008 variant of EADS Socata’s popular TBM850 include an integrated all-glass flight deck based on the last-generation Garmin G1000 system – replacing traditional instruments with large liquid crystal display (LCD) screens. It integrates primary flight, navigation, weather, traffic, ground proximity and technical information on the aircraft, fully associated with a digital autopilot. This reduces pilot workload and eases maintenance. As a result, the TBM 850 is one of the world’s most advanced light business aircraft available today.

The TBM 850 is world’s fastest single turboprop aircraft, with a maximum cruising speed of 320 KTAS at Flight Level 260 (in ISA conditions). It combines cruising speed and trip times of a light jet with the economic direct operating costs, range and moderate environmental signature of a turboprop engine. Its maximum range and useful load – which are enhanced on the new model, and the ability to land at small airports are some of its customers’ favorite features.

EADS Socata is one of the world’s leading general aviation manufacturers, with more than 17,000 aircraft built since its creation as Morane-Saulnier in 1911. Current products include the TBM family of high-speed turboprops, TB GT piston aircraft, aerostructures for Airbus civil airliners, the A400M military transporter, Dassault Falcon jets, Eurocopter helicopters and Embraer regional jets. EADS Socata is expanding its customer service activities, to support its growing fleet of TBM and offer its light aviation expertise for aircraft below 5.7 metric tons through avionics modernization, maintenance, repair and overall package offers. Headquartered in Tarbes, France, with North American operations in Pembroke Pines, Florida, EADS Socata is a wholly-owned subsidiary of EADS group.

EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2007, EADS generated revenues of € 39.1 billion and employed a workforce of about 116,000. The Group includes the aircraft manufacturer Airbus, the world's largest helicopter supplier Eurocopter and EADS Astrium, the European leader in space programs from Ariane to Galileo. EADS is the major partner in the Eurofighter consortium, develops the A400M through its Military Transport Aircraft Division, and holds a stake in the joint venture MBDA, the international leader in missile systems.

New Garmin avionics G1000, tailored for the TBM 850 – a true concentration of technology, replacing and integrating instruments, gauges and indicators. It significantly reduces the pilot’s workload and eases maintenance tasks.

This new avionics suite features two 10-inch-wide primary flight displays (PFDs), and one 15-inch multifunction display, the largest on a light business aircraft. This screen integrates navigation, weather, traffic and terrain information. It integrates engine monitoring, main technical information depicting aircraft status, and also airport arrival/departure plates and checklists.

Traditional gyro-based instruments are also replaced by two RVSM-compliant Air Data Calculators and two Air Horizontal Reference Systems (AHRS), complemented by a magnetic sensor. The system is completed by the GMC 710 autopilot, the first entirely digital autopilot.

The TBM’s previous environmental and vapor control system has been replaced by the Global Air System (GAS), produced by Liebherr Aerospace. It is automatically regulated by digital control, with pressurization and cabin temperature through two independent circuits.

An engine-driven compressor provides efficient cooling at engine start, with a 50 percent improvement in performance. The Model 2008 TBM 850 is the first light business aircraft to benefit from a dual zone temperature control, as the pilot and passengers can adjust their temperature separately for their own areas. Its maintenance is eased by the use of airline industry standard components and by a dual built-in test system.

The Model 2008 TBM 850’s cabin has been redesigned by the Catherineau design company, improving its functionality while retaining the “European flair”. New cushions and backrest shapes have been retained after intensive testing performed by a large array of persons with different sizes and statures.

The four main cabin side panels have been designed for quick change. They include compartment and large arm-rests. The passenger table folds entirely between two fuselage sections, offering two additional inches at the elbow. Cockpit access is easier due to the new seat shape and a 1-inch rise in the cabin ceiling.

The new TBM 850 avionics is the fruit of an exemplary partnership between the European airplane manufacture and its US supplier.

EADS Socata and Garmin technical teams have been working since the end of 2005 to develop the G1000 system, integrate it into the plane and gain certification of all functions. Achieving all this in under two years is a remarkably short development schedule in general aviation.

The test/development aircraft made its first flight in July 2006, and crossed the Atlantic in October 2006 on its way to Garmin’s headquarters at Olathe, Kansas.

The Garmin GFC 710 digital automatic pilot was installed there and fine-tuned by Garmin/EADS Socata team of engineers over the course of the following three months.

During the return journey to Tarbes at the end of January 2007, a cold-weather test was carried out over a week at Iqaluit in northern Canada to check that the aircraft and its new avionics function correctly in freezing polar conditions – temperatures of –33°C (-28°F) when stationary and –48°C (-54°F) in winds of up to 78 knots (145km/h).

The conclusion of the overall test campaign was certification testing, in which the new system was validated for the entire flight envelope.

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