With its long snout and three-blade prop, the ûTLS looks, and is, fast. It’s also one of the most ûcomfortable Mooneys the company has made.

The formula for high speed in airplanes is fairly simple. Nip away at the airframe drag as much as practical then stuff in the largest engine you can and hope you can find room for fuel to run the thing.

That sums up the Mooney M20M TLS, the fastest Mooney the factory ever turned out even if, arguably, it’s not the best. (We think the Ovation deserves that title.)

Nonetheless, the TLS is impressive. Surrounded with hype during its development, the TLS has a brutish 270-HP, turbocharged, intercooled Lycoming TIO-540- AF1A that gives it heroic climb rates, brisk cruises speed and a thirsty fuel flow to match, hardly the traditional stuff of…