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The G1000 And PW's Finest Make This An Exceptional Way To Travel

It would be hard to improve on a such an impressive performer as the TBM 850 single-engine turboprop... but that said, if there was one area the previous generation aircraft came up lacking, it was in cockpit integration. That concern has been nicely addressed by EADS Socata for 2008, with a simple one-word explanation: Garmin.

After working our way on a warm day at 308-310 kts at FL260, with th best of Garmin keeping things VERY manageable, we have to tell you that the TBM 850 has it RIGHT.

Upgrades to the latest TBM 850 variant includes its Integrated All-Glass Flight Deck, based on the last-generation Garmin G1000 system -- which replaces traditional instruments with large liquid crystal display (LCD) screens. It integrates primary flight, navigation, weather, traffic, ground proximity and technical information on the aircraft, fully associated with a digital autopilot. This reduces pilot workload and eases maintenance, and ...