Turbine Bonanza setting the pace?

[Steve Dawson]

You're not going to use a PT6A for a Mooney but probably the same Alison 250 as in a Silver Eagle so the weight would be less for the engine, but you'd have to do some frame work for the W&B as well as getting the aircraft higher off the ground to increase a larger prop and they weigh about 250 #'s.  It would be fun to try but I think I'd rather buy an Acclaim Ultra with a TN 550 and save fuel and frustration. 

Now if they could pressurize a Mooney, 

Edited October 20, 2024 by Steve Dawson

[A64Pilot]

You certainly could use a PT6, the -21 is 550 SHP and 330 lbs, the IO-550 is over 500lbs, so no charlie weights and maybe the batteries up front. Weight you saved would almost certainly be eaten up by increased fuel capacity though but it ought to work out, be Hell for fast in the flight levels.

Being 550 SHP you derate it to what the airframe can handle, say 315 SHP, but here’s the thing it could likely carry 315 SHP up to the flight levels, like a TBM can carry its power. I have no idea what the critical altitude for a TBM is, but it ought to be up there.

There is precedence on the bigger turbine Mooney, the TBM, that has a 1600 SHP core but is derated to I think between 700 and 850 SHP, but don’t quote me on that.

Problem is it’s likely to cost not too far off of whatever a TBM does, and who would buy a long body Mooney for close to TBM price.

In actuality a small PT6 cost about the same to manufacture as a bigger one, the parts count is pretty much the same just bigger, Pratt does charge by the power though, there are models that are essentially the same just some data plates give a bigger number and the fuel controls are set to produce it, and of course the price is commensurate with the power.

A PT6 is however a very primitive turbine, single stage gas producer and power turbine and doesn’t even have variable inlet guide vanes and it’s fuel consumption displays it’s primitive design, but then so is the baby Allison’s.

The T-800 is a very advanced turbine with low fuel consumption, when I was at the Test Activity they put one in a UH-1 for testing, the old Huey couldn’t use the power of course but it’s endurance went from 2.5 hours to over 4.

So far as I know the engine never made production, it was meant Comanche that was canceled, which was probably smart as we needed it about as bad as we needed an F-22.

Rambling a little just know that in the smaller turboprop engines they are similar to out pistons, that is they were designed by our Grandfathers, first Pratt was 1963 and the design is pretty much the same, sure it’s been refined with single growth crystal turbine blades etc., but it’s design is the same.

No real money in small turboprops as Pratt is pretty much it, the Garrett -10 was brought back into production, for the Reaper drone, but is it used in any new people aircraft?

I think the T-800 was sit down expensive, it far eclipsed the T-701 in the Apache that was 1 Mil ea, 30 years ago, and that was the price when you bought I don’t know how many thousands as ea Apache and Blackhawk has two, and then you need spares

Edited October 22, 2024 by A64Pilot

[M20F]

On 10/20/2024 at 9:31 AM, Steve Dawson said:

Now if they could pressurize a Mooney, 

Piper did, it’s called the Fury. 

[toto]

Piper did, it’s called the Fury. 

The M700 is just a PA46. Pressurized since the first Malibu rolled off the line in 1984

[toto]

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a turbine Bonanza before, then we have this thread, and a week later one shows up at my home drone..

[matt green]

I own a turbine bo.  I really like it.  I paid just a bit more than the typical A36 of the same year.  Some of the prices for these on controller right now are nuts.

While it has shorter legs than a normal bo, 4 hrs of straight flight time is about my max to hold in coffee and about an hour longer than I can convince my wife to fly.

Smooth and quiet...did I mention smooth and quiet?

My typical is 12k feet, burning 23gph at 198 tas.  I typically plan 3.5hr with a 45 reserve.

So I'm burning a bit more fuel but jet-a at my home port is a fair bit cheaper than 100ll and my take off and landing performance is outstanding.

It's a bit hard to see in the picture but the shadin is reporting 151pph

Edited November 2, 2024 by matt green

[201Steve]

1 hour ago, matt green said:

I own a turbine bo.  I really like it.  I paid just a bit more than the typical A36 of the same year.  Some of the prices for these on controller right now are nuts.

You are the positive attitude we need in this thread to encourage someone to see the project through. 

[A64Pilot]

On 11/2/2024 at 7:33 AM, 201Steve said:

You are the positive attitude we need in this thread to encourage someone to see the project through. 

Turbine conversions make more sense for larger aircraft.

If your really serious contact Bill Hatfield at www.turbineconversions.com I’ve done quite a lot if work with Bill, he STC’d a 10,500 lb tailwheel for me and developed the cowling a military aircraft we built called the Archangel.

Bill is surely very old now but he has a very good relationship with the feds and gets things done, sort of an Ag specialists but he also put a -21 Pratt in 206’s primarily as jump planes 

https://turbineconversions.com/conversions/turbine-206-cessna/

Edited November 3, 2024 by A64Pilot