Sun 'n Fun 2024: Lock & Key Navajo Refurbs

Mike Jones Aircraft in Murfreesboro, Tennessee found a real niche with what he calls the Bahama Station Wagon, also known as the Lock & Key Piper Navajo. Jones thinks the Piper Navajo is among the best piston twins ever built and his extensive Lock & Key refurbishment program makes a good airplane even better. With the latest avionics suite, speed and performance mods, high-end paint and interior work, plus extensive maintenance and component replacements, the aircraft really are better than new. The company had two Lock & Key Navajos on display at Sun 'n Fun 2024, and Aviation Consumer Editor in Chief spent some time with Jones looking them over.

[@MikeWhiskey427]

Cool seeing someone save a Navajo! Cool old birds.

[@GabeRamirez15]

The L&K team have a keen eye. Beautiful restorations.

[@johnanderson6323]

Second to none. Outstanding work that they stand behind.

[@atWay.]

Always fascinating seeing restomods with everything the news onse have plus more great value !

[@skyhawk5265]

A Tecnam P2012 is over $2.5M and I wouldn’t keep it if they gave it to me. I would take a Navajo Chieftan over the Tecnam any day.

[@jeffr6280]

Man, I was around Navajo's a lot when I work worked at an FBO at ILG decades ago. They looked more like school buses than a luxury sport ute. Great job by Lock and Key to get those old birds a new lease on life, and I'm sure someone is going to grab them up in short order.

[@36thstreethero]

“Our program starts at $1.5 mill-:closes video:”

[@user-lr3sc7my3u]

Hermosas naves !!!

[@seoceancrosser]

Should do some 90 series king airs from the 70s and 80s.

[@jbw9999]

These Navajos sound great. I just heard 75LK fly over.

[@kevinbarry71]

That is a lot of money for something that isn't a Turboprop

[@OmarKnowCars]

I was thinking the same thing

[@nick4506]

a similarly specced tbm is double that. if you dont care about new paint, avionics, and interior then what they are doing is not for you.

[@kohersh]

Which turboprops are you talking about that are that nice??

[@kevinbarry71]

@@nick4506 I prefer not to be running engines that date back to the Eisenhower administration. And one Turbo prop is far more reliable than two piston engines.

[@kevinbarry71]

@@nick4506 A TBM is, much faster, far more reliable, and will not kill you with an engine out on takeoff.

[@DanFrederiksen]

I get the idea but 2 million for a korean war era plane that's very expensive to maintain and likely close to impossible to sell. We need new amazing planes, not to gentrify the junkyard. You can get an Eclipse twin jet for less.

[@bernardanderson3758]

Mike Jones can refurbish a Piper Navajo Chieftain in a Beautiful Turn key Panther and more less prop noise design. I’m looking forward to seeing the Cessna P-210

[@M2Chris]

The man can sell..

[@wilzboyz]

Absolutely crazy at that price tags. Just insane.

[@galactictomato1434]

Airplanes are expensive. Heavy restored and updated airplanes are more expensive. Who knew.

[@jbw9999]

Yeah it's a lot of money, but there's a 2023 Baron on Controller right now for $2,250,000. Everything is crazy expensive now. All the work they did to these Navajos wasn't cheap.

[@LowandFast357]

For that price, you'd be better off with a 421C.

[@36thstreethero]

Does anyone understand how much less they are getting here? It seems $1mil is the new entry price for modern avionics.

[@SuperTrb0]

The problem with comparing these builds with classic cars is that classic cars can sit. Airplanes can’t. So you’re in $2 mil on a piston aircraft that has so-so fuel burn and so-so speed. At $2 million you can get yourself into a single TP that gets you above the weather, speed and less expensive fuel burn.

[@jbw9999]

But that one turboprop has twice the fuel burn than both of the Navajo's engines. And of course costs a few hundred thousand to overhaul. And HS inspection alone costs about what a piston overhaul does.

[@SuperTrb0]

@@jbw9999 But it’s faster, better range and can get above most weather. Fuel burn isn’t everything.

[@jbw9999]

@@SuperTrb0 Some weather; not sure about "most". But different people have different needs.

[@bernardanderson3758]

I saw a Mike Jones turn key Panther in Ohio last Monday

[@mts982]

do they refurb piper cheyenne 400LS?

[@jmwintenn]

it doesnt look bad but you can get a remanned twin commander for near that.

[@Dragonrc.]

Love what they do, but this just adds to the current state of GA becoming a rich mans thing again. I have been priced out of it and regret retiring from the military hoping to fly outside of the military. Almost impossible for me now, but still love seeing something being turned into a modern plane.

[@kevinbarry71]

An adult using the word "potty". Hysterical

[@SkylaneGuy]

Laugh all you want but that is the industry term for it - implies non flushable toilet.

[@nick4506]

@@chad6080 well if you want someing with a real bath room youre going to have to add another 10-20 million dollars to your budget.

[@Blxz]

How to turn old goods into good money. Too rich for my taste though. I expect a whole lot more plane for those prices.

[@Ka9radio_Mobile9]

🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@Bupkus68]

Winglets on a Navajo seem a bit…unnecessary?

[@jbw9999]

Why? Even TBMs come with winglets now. Colemill's Panther conversion has been adding winglets to Navajos for decades. Mike Jones bought out the Colemill conversions. From AOPA 11/5/1999 article "Colemill Panther Navajo": "said to provide additional lift, more stability, and reduce the yawing tendencies of Navajos in rough air" "When I got that airplane back, I, I realized that the better climb performance of both airplanes was a result of the props and winglets rather than having new engines."

[@jamesonpace726]

$1.72 million bucks & has a potty....

[@nick4506]

if you want a real bathroom you're going to need to up your budget by about another 10 million dollars.

[@billsheehy1]

Unlike Boeing