Piper Aircraft To Show Custom Red Bull M600 At Sun ’N Fun
Piper Aircraft announced recently that it will exhibit the single-engine M600 turboprop as part of its static display at the Sun ’N Fun International Fly-In Expo scheduled for April 10 to 15 in Lakeland, Florida. And not just any M600—Piper will show off a custom model owned by professional race pilot and two-time Red Bull Air Race world champion Kirby Chambliss. Chambliss’ M600 features a custom stars-and-stripes paint scheme and an interior that matches the Team Chambliss Edge 540 that will also be on display and that Chambliss will fly at Sun ’N Fun.
Flagship
Introduced in 2015, the M600 is designed for business and personal use and is a member of Piper’s M-Class series, which also includes the M350 and M500. The aircraft has a clean-sheet design and updates the M500 with Garmin G3000 avionics, a more powerful Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A 600-shaft-horsepower engine, and a Hartzell four-blade propeller.
In addition to the M600, Piper will display the pressurized, piston-powered M350 and the Archer TX and twin-engine Seminole models from the company’s trainer lineup, which also includes the single-engine Warrior and single-engine Arrow. Simon Caldecott, Piper Aircraft president and CEO, says Piper is “very pleased” to display its line of T-Class trainer aircraft and M-Class models at Sun ’N Fun.
Fun In The Sun
Held at the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, Sun ’N Fun is touted as Florida’s largest annual convention and the second largest fly-in event in the world. Sun ’N Fun’s roots date to 1974, when a group of aviation enthusiasts started the event. Held on 2,200 acres, the expo attracts pilots, aviation companies, media members, and enthusiasts from across the world with scads of events, including educational forums, aircraft static displays, professional aviation and economic development groups, airshows, and youth activities. According to Sun ’N Fun officials, air traffic movements related to the event make the Linder Airport “the busiest in the world” for one week.
When organizers opened the event to the public on a limited basis in 1976, the event drew roughly 6,200 registrants from 38 states and several countries. By 1978, Sun ’N Fun had become the second-largest fly-in event in America, with only the annual EAA AirVenture Oshkosh convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, topping it. In addition to the expo, Sun ’N Fun also conducts public and private activities year-round, including some events at its 200-acre Expo Campus.
If you’re in the market for a Piper airplane, Controller.com has numerous new and pre-owned trainers and M-Class models available for sale.
Source: Piper Aircraft
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