Well, I really hope it does well just because the market needs another option.
The TBM 850 is of course a pretty bird, I'll be the first to say that. Everyone loves it just like everyone loves BMW's. Myself, I've always enjoyed left field cars and left field products. It's how I'm wired, I suppose. Whenever all my friends went straight for the BWM dealers the minute they got credit (
), I always drove Citroens, Fiats and Saabs and crazy stuff like that. I wouldn't buy a BMW in a million years. I appreciate them and think they're great cars, but they're not quirky and individualistic enough for me. I suspect it's the same with airplanes. I have zero interest in Cirruses and the stuff most pilots seem to want. However, this bird ticks all my boxes and that's why I'm rooting for it and hope it does well.
I also think this aircraft will be much more versatile - I doubt a pilot would think twice about taking it into a short grass strip, whereas they'd probably be terrified to do that in an 850 or a Jetprop. And getting closer to your destination is handy for time savings, not to mention cheaper.
Underpowered is of course subjective. Compared to the other single engine turboprops - for sure. Or maybe they're overpowered?
What I like is the range and the reliability of turbine of this type. I've never understood why aircraft manufacturers put in such small tanks - I understand I can't fill the plane up with people and go +1000nm, but when I'm alone and have no baggage, why not? Empty tanks don't weigh a thing.
Now, where did I put that 1.6 mill dollar wad again?