Daher (Socata) · Business turboprop
Daher (Socata) TBM 700/850/900
Is the Daher (Socata) TBM 700/850/900 safe? It ranks Shared rankWithin 1 point of other aircraft types: the difference is not meaningful.More in the glossary of 18 private and business aircraft families we rate, with 24 fatal accidents counted in about 1.2 million flights since 2008.
Likely range 32 to 44
How the score is built
- Fatal accidents
- 24 in 1.2 million flights
19.7 fatal accidents per million flights. Counted: all civil flights (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other), accidents and unexplained losses; not counted: military, test and illegal flights, sabotage, hijackings, shoot-downs and deliberate crew acts.
- Full-loss equivalents
- 22.6
Each counted accident adds the share of people on board who died (1 = no survivors). This is what the score is based on.
- Flights flown
- 1.2 million
Estimated flights of all kinds. Flights of all kinds (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other civil use) 2008 to 3 November 2026: OpenSky 2022 flights of the type under any call sign (US military aircraft left out), re-weighted to World Bank departures country by country, carried to other years by the type's flights counted each year by FAA traffic flow management (TFMSC). Flights before 2008 are not used, like the accidents. About 80 flights per aircraft per year (fleet with a median service life of about 40 years). Uncertainty roughly ±30%.
- Technology generation
- Modern business turboprop (type first flew from 1980)
Small fleets are pulled toward the record of the other types of their generation: 3.3 full-loss equivalents per million flights over 8.4 million flights. Weight of this family's own record: 78%.
- Likely range
- 32 to 44
The score is 90% likely to lie in this range, given how few accidents a type has and the error in the estimate of its flights.
- Last fatal accident
- 24 November 2025
Private, near Monroe Municipal Airport (EFT/KEFT), Monroe, WI, United States of America: 2 of 2 people on board died.
- Hull losses
- 52
Civil aircraft destroyed or written off from all causes, including non-fatal accidents, cargo flights and attacks; airframes flown by air forces on military operations are left out. ASN gives no fate for some damaged aircraft, so this can be a little low (context only, not in the score).
Compared with everyday risks
One flight on the Daher (Socata) TBM 700/850/900 carries about the same risk of death as the activities near it below.
- An hour's walk1 in 14 million
- Driving 100 miles (160 km)1 in 5.9 million
- An ordinary day: accidents and violence1 in 1 million
- A day of skiing1 in 830,000
- A scuba dive1 in 500,000
- Cycling 100 miles (160 km)1 in 430,000
- Running a marathon1 in 290,000
- A skydive1 in 250,000
- A general anaesthetic1 in 100,000
- Riding a motorbike 100 miles (160 km)1 in 83,000
- One flight on the Daher (Socata) TBM 700/850/900This aircraft1 in 66,000
Accident history
24 fatal accidents since 2008 count toward the score, with 57 people on board killed.
| Date | Flight | Killed | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| PrivateSocata TBM700C2 · near Monroe Municipal Airport (EFT/KEFT), Monroe, WI, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | The new owners, trained on the TBM 700 19 days earlier, flew the RNAV approach to Monroe, Wisconsin, in fog below landing minimums. On the missed approach it turned and climbed erratically, then dived into a gravel quarry; both died. The investigation has not published a cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| Easton Air LLCSocata TBM700C2 · Dartmouth, MA, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | Minutes after leaving New Bedford for Kenosha under a ceiling of about 1,000 ft, the pilot said he was returning. After a low-altitude alert the TBM 700 hit trees and stopped between the lanes of Interstate 195; both on board died. The investigation has not published a cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| DGW Enterprises LLCSocata TBM700A · Brooklyn Park, MN, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | On the RNAV approach to Anoka County, Minnesota, under cloud with likely icing, the pilot did not answer a low-altitude alert; the TBM 700 sped up, turned left and dived, rotating, into a house in Brooklyn Park. He died. The investigation has not published a cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| AvRam Enterprises LLCDaher TBM700N (TBM960) · near Truckee Airport (TKF/KTRK), Truckee, CA, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | Flying home to Truckee in light snow and poor visibility, the TBM 960 passed the missed-approach point low, turned back over the airport, then entered a tightening left turn and steep descent near the railway. Both on board died. The investigation has not published a cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| BGD, LLCSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · near Ludington-Mason County Airport (LDM/KLDM), Ludington, MI, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | Taken from an unheated hangar in moderate snowfall, the TBM 850 took off from Ludington, Michigan, with snow on its wings and tail; the airport offered no de-icing. The left wing dropped after rotation, it stalled and crashed, and both on board died.Type: IcingASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700A · SSW of Champaign County Grimes Field Airport (I74), Urbana, OH, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | On his third solo flight in the TBM 700, the pilot stopped answering ATC while descending through 13,000 ft near Urbana, Ohio. It rolled left into a high-speed dive and hit power lines and trees; he died. The NTSB could not determine why the roll and dive were not stopped.Cause not yet established; counted.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| N965DM LLCSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · Corfu, NY, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | Near Buffalo, after 25 minutes out of radio contact at FL280, the pilot said all was fine and began descending through cloud. The TBM 850 entered a spiral dive beyond its limits and crashed in woods near Corfu, New York; both died. The NTSB could not say why control was lost.Cause not yet established; counted.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| N700AQ LLCSocata TBM700C2 · near Lansing-Capital Region International Airport (LAN), MI, United States of America | 5 killed / 6 on board | On an instrument approach to Lansing, Michigan, the TBM 700, over its maximum landing weight and behind its aft balance limit, slowed to 74 knots against an 85-knot approach speed. It stalled at low height, likely during a go-around; five of the six on board died.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700A · Uinta County north of Evanston, WY, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | After a 3.5-hour flight, in snow and low cloud, the TBM 700 began the missed approach at Evanston, Wyoming, but turned left about 270 degrees instead of following the procedure, then dived into terrain; both on board died. The NTSB found spatial disorientation.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700B · Zemyo, Yamazoe villege, Nara prefecture, Japan | 2 killed / 2 on board | Soon after leaving Yao, the pilot of the TBM 700, who had flown the type about ten times, asked to return. It lost control, dived in a turn and broke up in the air over Nara Prefecture; the couple on board died. The JTSB said he likely lacked the skill and knowledge needed.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700N (TBM900) · ilha do Campeche , Santa Catarina, Brazil | 2 killed / 2 on board | At night over the sea after leaving Florianópolis, the TBM 900 turned right through 360 degrees near 3,000 ft and vanished from radar into the water near Campeche Island. Both on board died. CENIPA named spatial disorientation as the main hypothesis but confirmed no cause.Cause not yet established; counted.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Trustey Management CorporationSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · Lawrence J Timmerman Airport, Milwaukee, WI, United States of America | 2 killed / 2 on board | Landing at Milwaukee Timmerman, the pilot let the nose pitch so the propeller struck the runway. He went around with the damaged propeller, climbed into a left turn, lost speed and stalled; the TBM 850 hit the ground and both on board died.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| New 51LGSocata TBM700N (TBM900) · Caribbean Sea, NE off Jamaica, Atlantic Ocean | 2 killed / 2 on board | At FL280 on the way to Naples, Florida, a pressurization fault cut bleed air to the TBM 900's cabin. The pilot and his wife, without masks, lost consciousness from hypoxia; it flew on until fuel ran out and fell into the sea off Jamaica. The checklist put troubleshooting first.Type: System failureASN record | |
| AG Plastics BelgiumSocata TBM700B · Saint-Jean-les-Deux-Jumeaux, Seine-et-Marne department, France | 2 killed / 5 on board | In cloud at FL240 on a flight from Cannes to Kortrijk, the TBM 700 suddenly dived in a right turn for unknown reasons. The pilot pulled up hard; it stalled into a spin that went flat and hit the ground, and two of five died. The BEA could not establish the causes for certain.Cause not yet established; counted.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700A · Ouray County Ridgway Reservoir, Ridgway, Colorado, United States of America | 5 killed / 5 on board | On a GPS approach to Montrose, Colorado, in cloud, the TBM 700 turned early and descended at up to 4,000 ft per minute; the pilot then reported a spin. It hit Ridgway Reservoir and all five died. The NTSB found lost control, a stall and a spin.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Aircraft Guaranty Corp TrusteeSocata TBM700B · Coulanhes-la-Vinuse, 10nm S of Auxerre, Yonne, Burgundy, France | 6 killed / 6 on board | Flying from Annecy to Toussus-le-Noble, the TBM 700 went out of control and dived into a field about 10 km south of Auxerre; all six on board died. A witness saw it come out of cloud out of control. The record gives no official cause.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Aircraft Guaranty Corporation TrusteeSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · Vertaizon, 20 km from Clermont-Ferrand, Puy-de-Dome, France | 3 killed / 3 on board | On the ILS to Clermont-Ferrand in cloud, the autopilot did not capture the glide path; a database coding error was a possible factor. The pilot hand-flew, left the approach off the published path, lost situational awareness and stalled; the TBM 850 crashed, killing all three.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700B · 1,24 NM from Rotenburg/Wümme Airport (EDXQ), Germany | 4 killed / 4 on board | Approaching Rotenburg, Germany, from Kiel to pick up two passengers, the pilots flew under visual rules in weather too poor for it and did not stop the descent in time. The TBM 700 hit a field about 2 km short of the runway; all four died.Type: Flight into terrainASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · near Black Donald Lake, between Calabogie and Griffith, Ontario, Canada | 1 killed / 1 on board | The pilot, alone on a private flight from Ottawa/Carp, climbed through FL260; the new TBM 850 then turned right into a spiral dive and hit the ground near Calabogie, Ontario. He died. The record gives no official cause.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| PrivateSocata TBM700C2 · Interstate 287, 1 mile south of Morristown, New Jersey, United States of America | 5 killed / 5 on board | Climbing out of Teterboro for Atlanta, the TBM 700 met severe icing near 17,000 ft that was not forecast. The pilot asked to climb but did not leave the icing quickly; control was lost, the right wing broke off and it fell onto Interstate 287. All five died.Type: IcingASN record | |
| Aircraft Guaranty Corporation TrusteeSocata TBM700A · near Lyon-Bron Airport, Bron, 10 km E of Lyon, Rhône-Alpes region, France | 1 killed / 1 on board | On final to Lyon-Bron in cloud, the TBM 700 crashed into a storm drain at Décines about 2 km short of the runway; the pilot, alone, died. The BEA found he lost control flying close to the stall with no outside view, but could not establish why.Cause not yet established; counted.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Green Plane LLCSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · Mt. Pleasant, WI, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | In cruise the TBM 850 lost fuel pressure and engine power twice; the pilot flew on, then glided toward an airport 10 miles away but crashed 3 miles short and died. The NTSB found long uncoordinated flight unported the fuel line; the propeller was not feathered.Type: FuelASN record | |
| Flying Max LLCSocata TBM700C2 · Cobb County-McCollum Field, Kennesaw, GA, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | Nearing runway 9 at Kennesaw, Georgia, the pilot flew an S-turn for ATC, then banked hard left onto final at about 89 knots; the TBM 700 rolled onto its back and dived in, killing him. The NTSB found he let airspeed decay into a stall.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Martin Lewis/Angel Flight Central IncSocata TBM700N (TBM850) · Iowa City Municipal Airport (IOW/KIOW), Iowa City, IA, United States of America | 1 killed / 3 on board | On a volunteer Angel Flight taking a patient home, the private pilot took off from Iowa City with a strong tailwind and lifted off late. The TBM 850 stalled about 30 ft up and hit the ground. A toddler held unbelted on her mother's lap died; the pilot and the mother survived.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record |
Listed but not counted
These events happened before 2008 (the score covers 2008 onward, the period its flight count covers), on military, test or illegal flights, or were caused by a crime or a deliberate act, which says little about the aircraft design.
| Date | Flight | Killed | Why not counted |
|---|---|---|---|
| PrivateSocata TBM700B · Dartmouth, MA, United States of America | 3 killed / 3 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Flying to New Bedford at night under a 200 ft ceiling, the two pilots flew the ILS fast, climbed steeply on the missed approach and lost control; the TBM 700 hit the ground in Dartmouth, killing all three. The flight plan and weather briefing had been for the wrong airport.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Thys LimburgSocata TBM700B · West of Runway 01 threshold, Oxford (Kidlington) Airport, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom | 3 killed / 3 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. On a visual straight-in approach to Oxford Kidlington from Brussels, the TBM 700 began to roll left as it crossed the airfield boundary and hit the ground beside the runway threshold; all three died. The AAIB found no technical fault and no conclusive cause.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Quest DiagnosticsSocata TBM700B · near Mobile Downtown Airport (BFM/KBFM), Mobile, AL, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Nearing Mobile Downtown, the pilot reported a runaway engine and shut it down; the TBM 700 hit a utility pole half a mile short of the runway and burned, killing him. A power control link had been fitted wrongly in maintenance, and he did not follow the emergency procedure.Type: Engine failureASN record | |
| High Performance Technologies IncSocata TBM700A · near Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO/KJYO), VA, United States of America | 3 killed / 3 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Flying the localizer approach to Leesburg, Virginia, in fog under a 300 ft ceiling, the private pilot in the left seat never stabilised the approach. The TBM 700 slowed to 68 knots, turned left and stalled into trees; all three on board died.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Technical Leasing, Inc.Socata TBM700A · 1/4 mile S of Centennial Airport, Englewood, Colorado, United States of America | 1 killed / 1 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Taking off from Centennial, Colorado, in ice fog and low cloud, the TBM 700 drifted left, climbed in a left turn, then turned down and hit the ground on airport land. The pilot, alone, died. The NTSB found spatial disorientation after a choice to fly into known bad weather.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Eagle Flight Center IncSocata TBM700A · Spearfish/Black Hills Airport (SPF/KSPF), SD, United States of America | 4 killed / 4 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Circling to land at Spearfish, South Dakota, under ragged 400-500 ft cloud, the TBM 700 briefly entered cloud on the downwind leg, then banked to 70-80 degrees turning base and dived into the ground; all four died. The NTSB cited lost control and ignored approach minimums.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record | |
| Nozaki SangyoSocata TBM700A · Obihiro, near Kushiro Airport, Kushiro, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan | 6 killed / 6 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. On an ILS approach to Kushiro in fog, the TBM 700 flew far too low and hit an antenna installation about 200 m short of runway 17, then burned. The pilot and five passengers died.Type: Flight into terrainASN record | |
| Durst EnterprisesSocata TBM700A · Wiedener Eck, near Freiburg im Breisgau Airport, EDTF, Germany | 6 killed / 6 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Climbing from Freiburg toward FL95 on a flight to Vienna, the pilot reported instrument problems; radar contact was then lost and the TBM 700 hit terrain at 3,300 ft. All six on board died. The record gives no official cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record |
All 24 counted fatal events of the TBM family, from 2008 to 3 November 2026, were private or corporate flights, and together they killed 57 people. Our data lists 8 more from before 2008, private or corporate flights too, which do not count because the score covers accidents and flights from 2008 on. That pattern says more about how the aircraft is used than about how it is built.
Who flies a TBM?
Socata in France first flew the TBM 700 in 1988, and it entered service in 1990. Daher now builds it as the TBM 960. About 1,290 have been built and about 1,200 are in service. It is a pressurised single-engine turboprop with about six seats, certified for one pilot. The newest versions cruise at up to about 330 knots, among the fastest single-engine turboprops.
Most TBMs are flown by their owners, many of whom move up from smaller piston aircraft: a large step in speed, altitude and systems.
How does its record compare?
Per flight, the TBM has the weakest record in the modern business turboprop class (types first flown from 1980), behind the Pilatus PC-12 and the King Air 350. Our model gives it about 1.2 million flights since 2008, an estimate with a wide margin. With 24 counted accidents, confidence is medium, and the family's own record carries most of the weight in its score; the better class record lifts it a little. Across all business aircraft it shares the lowest rank with the King Air 90: the two scores are a point apart, so the gap is small and uncertain. Our method explains this.
What the investigations found
About half of the 32 events in our data, counted or not, came while approaching to land or going around, about a dozen of them in cloud, fog or snow. An early example, from before 2008 and not counted, is near Kushiro, Japan, on 26 April 1996: a Nozaki Sangyo TBM 700 flew far too low on an approach in fog and hit an antenna, and all six died. The most recent, near Monroe, Wisconsin, on 24 November 2025, took place in fog below landing minimums; two died, and no cause has been published.
Loss of control in the climb or at cruise height is the second theme. In several cases investigators could not say why, as near Corfu, New York, on 2 October 2020, where the NTSB found the cause undetermined.
Ice is central in two records. On 20 December 2011, a TBM 700 met severe icing that was not forecast after leaving Teterboro and fell onto Interstate 287 near Morristown, New Jersey, with five dead. On 26 November 2023, a TBM 850 took off from Ludington, Michigan, with snow on its wings and tail; the airport offered no de-icing, and both on board died.
One case points at a system. On 5 September 2014, a TBM 900 lost cabin pressure in cruise. The pilot and his wife lost consciousness without masks, and the aircraft flew on until it ran out of fuel off Jamaica. The NTSB found a pressurisation system prone to needless shutdown and a checklist that put troubleshooting before protection from hypoxia.
Pilots new to the type
In at least three records the pilot had little time on the TBM. On 14 August 2017, a pilot who had flown the type about ten times lost control over Nara Prefecture, Japan, and the JTSB found it somewhat likely that he lacked the skills and knowledge the aircraft needed. In Ohio in 2021, a pilot was on his third solo TBM flight. At Monroe in 2025, the pilot had bought the aircraft that month and finished type training 19 days earlier. It shows how much a fast, high-flying single asks of a pilot who flies it alone. Newer versions can have HomeSafe, an emergency autoland that a passenger can start if the pilot is incapacitated.
If you charter a TBM
- Confirm the operator's air operator certificate with the national aviation authority.
- Ask how many hours the pilot has on the TBM itself, not only in total.
- Ask what the operator does when icing or low cloud is forecast at the destination.
- Ask whether the aircraft has HomeSafe, and whether you will be shown the oxygen masks.
How to tell if you are on one
Flight trackers show TBM7, TBM8 or TBM9. For a twin turboprop with a longer history, see the King Air 200.
Questions people ask
Is the TBM a safe plane?
Its record per flight is weaker than that of the Pilatus PC-12 and King Air 350, the other modern business turboprops we rate. All 24 counted fatal events from 2008, the period the score covers, to 3 November 2026 were private or corporate flights, and most involved cloud, ice or an approach in poor weather. Few findings point to the design itself.
How many fatal TBM accidents have there been?
Our data lists 32 fatal events in the type's whole history up to 3 November 2026. The 24 from 2008 on count toward the score and killed 57 people. The 8 before 2008 do not count.
Who flies the TBM?
Mostly the owners themselves, on private and business trips, with one pilot. Many owners come to it from smaller piston aircraft. Some companies and charter operators also fly it.
Is the TBM 960 safer than the TBM 700?
The newer models have a modern Garmin cockpit, and an emergency autoland called HomeSafe is available on recent versions. Our data scores the family as a whole, not each model, and the newer models have too few flights to compare on their own.
What code does a TBM show on a flight tracker?
TBM7 for the TBM 700, TBM8 for the TBM 850 and TBM9 for the TBM 900, 910, 930, 940 and 960.
Sources
- 1.ASN record: Nozaki Sangyo Socata TBM 700, near Kushiro Airport, Japan, 26 April 1996 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 2.ASN record: Private Socata TBM 700, Interstate 287 near Morristown, New Jersey, 20 December 2011 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 3.ASN record: New 51LG Socata TBM 900, Caribbean Sea off Jamaica, 5 September 2014 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 4.ASN record: BGD Socata TBM 850, near Ludington, Michigan, 26 November 2023 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 5.ASN record: Private Socata TBM 700, Nara Prefecture, Japan, 14 August 2017 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 6.ASN record: AvRam Enterprises Daher TBM 960, near Truckee, California, 30 March 2024 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 7.ASN record: Private Socata TBM 700, near Monroe, Wisconsin, 24 November 2025 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 8.SafetyScorer exposure model: OpenSky Network flights 2022 (all operators), World Bank departures, FAA TFMSC (opens in a new tab)Flights of all kinds (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other civil use) 2008 to 3 November 2026: OpenSky 2022 flights of the type under any call sign (US military aircraft left out), re-weighted to World Bank departures country by country, carried to other years by the type's flights counted each year by FAA traffic flow management (TFMSC). Flights before 2008 are not used, like the accidents. About 80 flights per aircraft per year (fleet with a median service life of about 40 years). Uncertainty roughly ±30%.