LONDON: French aircraft manufacturer and aerostructures company Daher recorded a 10% hike in deliveries of its TBM 900 turboprop in 2015. The Tarbes, southwest France-based airframer shipped 55 of the single-engined type – the third iteration of the TBM series – last year, compared with 50 of them a year earlier.
This is the highest annual shipment tally for the 20-year-old TBM series since the market peak in 2008, when it delivered 60 second-generation TBM 850s.
The US topped the shipment leaderboard in 2015, with customers receiving 44 examples of the $3.8 million TBM 900. Latin America ranked second, with Brazil and Mexico recipients of three and two aircraft, respectively. Europe, in third place, received two units in Germany and one each in France and Spain.
The international market continues to pose a challenge for the airframer as fragile economies – particularly in Europe – stifle buyer confidence. Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice-president of Daher’s airplane business unit, believes there is little hope of a turnaround in the coming 12 months.
Meanwhile, the airframer will prepare for the market rebound, he says, by promoting “all of the elements of the TBM’s competitiveness: a dependable aircraft, a highly motivated and dedicated team, a network of enthusiastic and professional distributors, and solid backing by our parent company”.
