AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 32
PILOT BRIEFING
BUDGETBUY
BUY| |
BUDGET
Socata TB9 Tampico
Looks fast but isn't. C'est la vie
B Y A LTO N K . M A R S H
What you really need to know about the French-built Socata TB-9 Tampico is that it was-
in this country, at least-a training airplane built at the express request of flight schools, says
Socata expert Andrew Knott, webmaster for the Socata TB Users Group. Perhaps 90 percent
of the 52 Tampicos registered in the United States have 6,000 to 7,000 hours on the airframe
and that, in turn, triggers airworthiness directives requiring structural inspections.
While it is not fast, this 105-knot, four-seat airplane is a great training airplane and time
builder. That's how former owner Joe Rushing of Texas used his. He found annual inspections were usually $1,200 to $1,400, but that first one was a doozy. He spent $6,900 getting
repairs done that had accumulated because few Texas mechanics had experience with the
foreign airplane. Then there was the need to upgrade to ADS-B Out. He added a few more
avionics to reach the $6,900 total.
Other than the first-year surprise, Rushing found it a fun airplane to fly, forgiving when
doing flight-training maneuvers and especially landings. Depending on the mission, he
planned for true airspeeds of 95 to 110 knots. "It's not real, real fast," he said. "It looks fast on
the ground." He bought it for $40,000.
The aircraft design started out as a 180-horsepower, 120-knot Tobago, but was remade
into a 160-horsepower Tampico to meet flight-school needs. Therefore, you have a 160-horsepower engine pulling the same fuselage originally designed for a 180-horsepower engine.
The aircraft got its TB designation from being built in Tarbes, France, although a TF designation would make more sense. Shane Schmidt, who manages a Tampico, calls it a "good"
aircraft with a strange ignition key. It has dimples on the sides instead of teeth on the bottom like a good old American key. They do things differently in France.
ALTON K. MARSH is a former senior editor at AOPA Pilot who is now a freelance writer
specializing in aviation.
32 | AOPA PILOT February 2020
PRICE
There are three listed on the
Trade-A-Plane website ranging from $44,900 for a 1994
model with more than 7,000
hours total time to $57,500 for
a 4,975-hour 1990 model.
HOW MANY IN THE FLEET?
Not many. AIRPAC PlaneBase
reports as of December 2019
only 52 are registered in the
United States.
FINANCING
AOPA Aircraft Finance
estimates a $52,000 loan (an
average price of the Tampicos
found for sale) would have a
monthly payment of $373 for
15 years at 6 percent interest
and would require 15 percent
down.
BIGGEST PLUS
Looks fast on the ground.
Inexpensive to operate.
BIGGEST MINUS
Isn't fast in the air. Probably
was a trainer.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
See the Socata TB Users
Group website (socata.org).
Use their "Contact us" information to ask questions.
http://www.socata.org
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020
Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Intro
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 7
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - 33
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2020 - Cover4
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