Piper PA-46-350P Malibu Mirage
N502EU
(c/n 46-22182)
The original PA-46
Malibu first flew in 1983. It is generally acknowledged to be the
first single piston
engined aircraft to feature
a fully pressurized cabin, permitting high altitude cruising.
Unfortunately,
several aircraft broke up in
mid air due to adverse weather conditions and the FAA was forced to pull
its IMC Certification in
1991. Piper were able to re-engineer and correct the
problems, however, and
full production resumed in
1992. The 350P version seen above in a hangar at
Camarillo, California in
1999 was dubbed "Malibu
Mirage". This beautiful machine should probably be
grouped in the "Executive"
selection, but I decided to
put it with the single engine types.