In a low-key event at Sun ‘n Fun’s opening day Tuesday, Mooney took the cover off a mock-up of its new M20T proposed training aircraft. Although it was developed in Mooney’s new facility in Chino, California, the airplane first saw the light of day last fall in the big Chinese aviation trade show in Zhuhai.
Mooney CEO Jerry Chen told AVweb that developmental work on the M10T, along with its retractable stablemate, the M10J, continues in California toward a flight certification program to begin later this year, with a first flight planned for July or August. The M10T is a departure for Mooney since it’s of composite construction with heavy use of carbon fiber, according to the engineering staff AVweb spoke to. The M10T has fixed gear and it’s intended for the institutional training market, Chen said. It’s powered by a Continental CD-135 turbodiesel.
The mock-up on display at Sun ‘n Fun is fully detailed and at full size and features a richly appointed black and leather interior, with Garmin G1000 avionics and side-stick controllers rather than Mooney’s traditional yoke. The cabin is a spacious 48 inches in width and has plenty of headroom. But rather than four seats, the M10T has three, with the rear seat located in the center of the aft cabin. Mooney isn’t giving any weights, but it’s claiming a max cruise speed of 160 knots with a range of 500 miles. For a video tour of the M10T and an interview with Jerry Chen, click here.
