• The Mitsubishi Solitaire is meant to get you up and over the clouds.David Epperson/Photodisc/Getty Images
  
  The Mitsubishi MU-2 Solitaire was produced from 1979 to 1981. It is a twin-engined turboprop airplane. There are four versions of the same plane, each with small differences. The total production years for the MU-2 were 1967 to 1985. The Solitaire was designed to be a competitive private plane with extended seating and cargo capacity. The other versions hold a greater number of people at a larger price tag, making them more apt to be owned and operated by small airlines servicing remote locations.
  
  

Engine

• The plane is powered by two turboprops with 727 shaft horsepower (shp) at maximum continuous power or 689 shp at cruise power. The recommended cruise power for these engines is 96 percent rpm. The rate of climb is 475 feet per minute (fpm) per engine when the plane is loaded to full gross weight. Each engine turns a Hartzell 98-inch prop with four blades.
  
  

Interior Specs

• The plane seats eight to nine people. The gross weight for the Solitaire is 10,470 pounds. The entirely empty weight is 7,010 pounds. The cargo area is in the rear of the plane behind the back seats. The two rear seats can be removed to increase the cargo area. The Solitaire is considered the standard fuselage while the Marquis version of the same plane is the stretched fuselage, allowing for more seating.
  
  

Performance

• This plane can cruise at 360 miles per hour (mph) with a total top speed of 370 mph. The stall speed is 84 mph. The Solitaire can climb at a rate of 2,350 fpm to a ceiling of 33,500 feet. It requires a 50-foot takeoff distance and the same for landing. The cabin pressurization differential is 6.0 psi allowing the aircraft to maintain sea-level pressurization up to 14,000 feet.
  
  

Exterior

• The front entry door is on the pilot side of the aircraft and features drop-down stairs. In the rear of the aircraft is another door on the pilot side. This is for loading cargo, but you can add a set of stairs to make it an entrance as well. Landing gear is fixed and the wings are top-mounted. The two turboprop engines are located on the wings, one on each wing.