Mooney M10
Just months after resuming production at its Kerrville, Texas, factory, Mooney International has unveiled two new models, both diesel-powered and both aimed at the global training market. Surprisingly, rather than riveted metal, the company said the new aircraft — the M10T and M10J — will be of composite construction. The company made the announcement at the principal general aviation show in Zhuhai, China, this week, where it had a mock-up on display.
Although the rollout was announced in Zhuhai, the company said the aircraft will be aimed at both the mature global training market and the developing market in China and Asia. The M10T is a fixed-gear design powered by Continental’s CD-135 diesel and is meant to provide what Mooney calls a seamless step up to Mooney’s traditional fast and efficient cruisers, the M20 line. The M10J,reminiscent of the popular M20J 201, will be a retractable powered by the Continental CD-155 diesel. It too will have a Chinese marketing component. Mooney says the airplane would have a cruise speed of about 170 knots and although no fuel burn specs were given, the CD-155 typically burns about 5.5 GPH in cruise flight.
No prices for the new aircraft were offered at Zhuhai, butthe company said the aircraft would be “competitive.” Certification and deliveries are planned for 2017, an aggressive schedule. After some five years of dormancy, Mooney resumed limited production in Kerrville. The company was bought by Chinese interests last year and resumed production this summer, initially completing airframes already underway when the company shut down in 2008. It’s not known if the new airplanes will be built in the U.S. or in China.
