Texas Aircraft Stallion takes aim at Cessna Skylane

The aircraft is designed to comply with the coming light sport aircraft regulation update (Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification) in the United States and offers pilots additional capabilities over typical light sport models.

The Hondo, Texas, company already sells the Colt, a two-seat LSA designed primarily for flight training. In 2023 Texas Aircraft announced plans to sell a larger four-place model as a personal aircraft for general aviation pilots and began developing a prototype, which was built at the Inpaer factory near São Paulo.

The Stallion is the company’s first design to seek FAA approval under the forthcoming MOSAIC-driven SLSA rules. Texas Aircraft said it aims the Stallion at a broad audience including pilots seeking a modern, comfortable and powerful cross-country traveler for personal trips. The company also markets the Stallion to business users who wish to schedule multiple meetings in different cities while using the airplane to save time and gain access to smaller local airports that are closer to their destinations than international fields that serve airlines.

The company said farmers and other producers in agricultural markets can use the Stallion to travel quickly between properties, meet with customers, and monitor a range of projects.

The four-seat Stallion is roughly the same size as a Cessna 182 and is meant to compete with the Skylane and other high-performance piston singles. Its empty weight is 1,698 pounds and it has a useful load of 1,168 pounds.

There are two versions of the Stallion. One is powered by a 200-horsepower Lycoming IO-360 and has a maximum cruise speed of 135 knots calibrated airspeed, and an economy cruise speed of 120 knots. The second version has a 260-horsepower Lycoming IO-540, a maximum cruise speed of 155 knots, and an economy cruise speed of 140 knots. Both versions have a clean stall speed of 58 knots that decreases to 52 knots with flaps deployed, and a range of 900 nautical miles with a 30-minute reserve.

Texas Aircraft said it plans to offer the aircraft in the United States in 2026 at an estimated base price of about $500,000.