Manufacturer Lays Claim To Fastest Piston Single Title
How about kicking off the New Year with some speed? Thursday
afternoon, Mooney Airplane Company told ANN the company's M20 TN
Acclaim has received its final certification from the Federal
Aviation Administration -- and deliveries are expected to begin
immediately.
Mooney says the 280-hp Acclaim is the fastest airplane ever
produced by the planemaker, with the power to cruise at a true air
speed of 237 knots (KTAS) at its service ceiling of 25,000
feet.
Even at a lower cruising altitude of 10,000 feet, Mooney says
the Acclaim will exceed 200 KTAS... making it the fastest airplane
in its class, a title previously held by the Columbia 400.
(We can't imagine the folks up in Bend, OR will remain quiet
on this one... Ed.)
"With the certification of the Acclaim, the debate is over,"
said David Copeland, Mooney's vice president of sales and
marketing. "Now there's no question which single engine piston
airplane can claim the title as the 'fastest' since the Acclaim
clearly boasts the highest maximum cruise speed and it is now
officially 'in service.' We're pleased that we were able to bring
this airplane to the marketplace expeditiously and we're confident
that the enthusiasm and acceptance of the Acclaim will continue to
grow, as well."
The Acclaim is powered by a 280 horsepower Teledyne Continental
TSIO-550-G turbo-normalized engine equipped with twin turbochargers
and dual intercoolers, turning a three-bladed Hartzell propeller.
When ordered with optional 130 gallon long-range fuel tanks, it can
fly up to 1,615 nautical miles (nm) while maintaining a 200 knot
cruise speed.
Announced last April at Lakeland
2006, the Acclaim offers an impressive 20% increase in
cruise speed over its predecessor, the Bravo, which it replaced in
the product line. The Acclaim also features the popular Garmin
G1000 avionics package as standard, and is available with the
Garmin GFC 700 autopilot, air conditioning and the industry's only
factory-installed, FAA-approved flight-into-known-icing package, as
well.
Mooney says there is a substantial order backlog for the
Acclaim... which should keep workers in Kerrville busy for some
time to come.
Mooney Airplane Company currently sells two models of the M20
high performance, four-place, glass cockpit, single-engine
piston-powered aircraft. Since its inception in 1946, the company
has manufactured and delivered more than 11,000 aircraft worldwide.
Today, 7,000 customers in the United States and 1,000 more overseas
fly Mooneys.