[1] It was an attempt to create an alternative to pressurized single-engine airplanes being introduced by Beechcraft, Cessna and Piper Aircraft.
Further development was carried out by a consortium led by French investors, eventually resulting in the SOCATA TBM.
The 301's general configuration was similar to other Mooney models, differing in details such as an aft-sloping vertical fin, as opposed to the vertical leading edge with forward-swept trailing edge M20 fin, a lower-set engine with small cooling-air inlets, and fixed horizontal stabilizers with trim tab-equipped elevators, as opposed to the pivoting-empennage M20 design.
The tapered wing planform was similar to the M20, slightly longer (37.0 feet vs. 36.42 feet for the M20), and with several differences: the airfoil was a low-drag 15% profile NASA NLF(1)-0315 from root to tip;[4] double-slotted Fowler flaps covering 90% of the trailing-edge length, with slotted ailerons on the remaining 10%, and with spoilers mounted on the wing's upper surfaces ahead of the flaps to assist the ailerons.
It rested in the Mooney Engineering Department for several years, then its wings were removed and the remainder was donated to an A & P school in Abilene, Texas.