As part of its presence here at the show, French airframer Daher (Chalet 226; Hall 2a Stand B253) has brought one of its new TBM 930 turboprops to the static display (B4), adorned with a special paint scheme commemorating the 100th anniversary of America’s entry into World War I. For Daher, the paint job also harks back to its roots as Morane-Saulnier, one of the world’s oldest aircraft manufacturers, which provided high-wing training aircraft to the American Expeditionary Forces at the airbase at Issoudun, France, the world’s largest at the time of the Great War.

“The World War I centennial celebrates 100 years of French and U.S. cooperation, a camaraderie that continues today across the Atlantic,” said Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of the Daher airplane business unit, and president of Socata North America, the company’s U.S. subsidiary. “We are proud of Daher’s continued American presence, with nearly 1,000 airplanes in operation, composed of our TBM very fast turboprop, as well as the Rallye and TB general aviation aircraft.”

The U.S. represents the OEM’s largest single market for the TBM series, having delivered more than 600 of the single-engine aircraft there, with the TBM 910 and 930 (differentiated by their avionics suites) representing the latest members of the family. “Backed by a network of 15 service centers, our company continues to give wings to U.S. aviators,” Chabbert concluded.