Soloy Aviation Solutions’ conversion of the Beech A36 Bonanza replaces the original 300 hp Continental IO-550 with a Rolls-Royce M250-B17F/2 producing 450 shp flat rated (380 shp actual) for takeoff. Price, of course, is just one element in choosing the right airplane.īefore single-engine turboprops such as the Pilatus PC-12, Piper M600 and TBM became the rage for owner-operators, turbine-powered airplanes often evolved from converted piston-powered machines. Cirrus, naturally, hopes many will choose the $2.75 million single-engine Vision Jet. A King Air C90 GT runs about $3.75 million and the smallest single-pilot twin-engine jet, an Embraer Phenom 100, lists for about $4.5 million.
The twin-engine piston market is virtually non-existent for starters, while a new Pilatus PC-12NG lists for about $5 million. The motivation to look at modifying an existing airplane rather than purchasing new is pretty simple for owner-pilots who want to move out of their Cirrus, Bonanza or Baron. The trick is choosing the right airframe to transform. Each company has managed to create a special spot in the heart of aviators by tweaking airplanes people already loved to make them fly higher, faster and farther. Satisfying those performance- minded cravings is why companies such as Blackhawk, Raisbeck Engineering, Nextant Aerospace, Soloy Aviation Solutions, Finnoff Aviation and other propulsion-modification creators exist and thrive today. Paraphrasing the 19th century British politician John Dalberg-Acton’s well-known take on the corrupting influence of power, “Power tends to spoil pilots, and additional power spoils them even more.” No matter how fast an airplane flies, there’s always someone wondering why it can’t cruise just a little faster, or climb a little quicker or carry just a bit more.
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