Piper Aircraft has been awarded FAA approval for its flagship M600/SLS single engine turboprop aircraft to be operated from unpaved fields. Piper has received numerous requests for unpaved field certification from several global markets and is pleased to announce kit approval has also been completed for Canada, the UK, and Europe (EASA). Brazil certification is expected in early 2023.

All 2022 M600/SLS aircraft, starting with serial number 198, are factory provisioned to operate on unpaved fields with the incorporation of supplement #5 into the approved aircraft pilot's operating handbook. Fielded 2016-2021, M600 aircraft equipped with five-blade propellers also have the option to be modified by Piper kit #88705-702 to accommodate the same unpaved field operations. The primary kit components include a slightly redesigned nose fork and scissor link to handle unpaved field surface inconsistencies, the installation of a small nose gear wheel well plate cutout allowing the nose wheel to stow properly with the gear retracted and a POH supplement.

“The Piper M600/SLS is known for its performance, reliability and versatility over a wide array of general aviation missions,” says president and CEO John Calcagno. “Now, with the addition of unpaved field capability, the M600's versatility and asset value is taken to a whole new level.”