Another entry into the diesel market: Mooney

Let’s not keep this anti-Mooney myth going….I have flown with three adult passengers on many occasions in my M20J…several 3+hr legs as well…not a problem

I had 3 in my short body C model on short flights. One of my pilots does this quite regularly. But most of the time I fly alone or with my wife. For that purpose there is plebty of space.

But anyhow, this is not the M20, let alone the short body we are talking about but a new plane which is said to have a 48" wide cabin.

2+1 seems ideal for 2 adults and a kid. My primary concern would be weight, but the picture of that leaflet posted is too small to really see something.

here is the original.

I like the little Mooney, and I am pleased and surprised to learn about it. It looks better than most other fast two-seaters (Flyer59 may be right about the straight main gear legs, though). The cockpit looks attractive, roomy and with good visibility. Stick is great, side- or wherever.
The Mooney tail just could not look any different. It is not aestethics, it is just another way to spell “Mooney”.
And if some of the old Mooney people are still at the office, the speed promises will hold up.
I have flown old and new Mooneys (M20F Executive and Ovation 2½) and I like the (slightly different) way they handle. I expect the M10 to be good, too. With a stick, it has to be.

One of the properties the M10 ad says nothing about is weight, including useful loads. The Acclaim with 4 seats is actually a single-person aircraft when you fill the optional long-range tanks. Then what to expect from a two-seater? Load-carrying ability is usually the nemesis of any two-seater.

I know that Mooney knows how to design speedy planes, but maybe the numbers they quote are a bit optimistic. Well, what do you expect from a sales brochure. Would the 10T really be 15-20 knots faster than the Diamond 40 with the same engine? Also 180 KTAS max speed for the 10J seems high for a plane with a 155HP engine, even turbo.
Other than that, great looking aircraft in my view, and I wish them luck. This approach makes more sense to me than sticking to the older designs.

Aart,

I reckon they are careful to avoid a overstatement as it really appears the M10 is following the footsteps of the M20J and subsequent planes. The speeds they did advertize there are quite realistic (201 mph for the J, 231 for the K and 252 for the.. 252.) The M10 is a lot lighter than the DA40 with only 2 seats and together with the aerodynamic experience Mooney will bing into this, I would not be surprised if they manage to get 140 kts @ cruise power for the T and 170 kts for the J which has retracable gear.

The big questionmark will be payload. Let’s hope they will calculate realistically and allow at least 200 kgs for the people and bags plus 125 kgs for fuel (42USG Jet A1), so realistically this plane needs a payload of approximately 330-350 kgs, especcially the J with its optional 3rd seat. Lets see what they will do with that and hope they learned the lessons from the Ovation and Acclaim.

The other thing will be price. While I think that particularly the J makes a great traveller with 170 kts @ 5 gph and a G1000/GFC700, it is nevertheless a 2-3 seater. It will be interesting to see how much they will ask for it. Certainly it answers the call for a entry level plane.

Very classy promotion vid:

Well, what do you expect from a sales brochure.

I had a Jim Bede flashback when reading the back cover of the December Flying mag has an advert for the new M10 that includes the statement “Now taking reservations”… for a diesel powered aircraft with no advertised price that apparently has yet to begin flight testing.

Good thing you didn’t have a Hawker 4000 flashback.