Piper Comanche - search results

Most piston twins have carved themselves a market share for a few years, then vanished as market conditions changed. Piper’s Twin Comanche and Aztec are examples and so is the Beech Travel Air, Duke and Duchess. On the other hand, for various reasons, some twins have endured and Piper builds two of them, the Seminole and the Seneca. Both have endured for various reasons, although neither is made in much volume these days. It’s easy to see why the Seneca has endured. It does nothing exceedingly well—it’s not fast, nor a joy to fly nor will it turn heads on the ramp—but it does a lot we'll enough.

Our review of the 100 most recent Piper Comanche accidents uncovered something we expected in an aging fleet-a substantial number of accidents due to failure to perform needed maintenance or maintenance that was poorly performed. It showed up in engine failures, 12 gear collapses and an inflight breakup where a badly repaired stabilator came apart.

Its often the first airplane many buyers think of when stepping up to a retrac from an entry level model.

A sensible, well-behaved, moderate performer that never goes out of style.

Earn your wings in an entry-level Piper PA-28 and a logical step-up may be a PA-32R. From the early 300-HP Lance to the late-model...

The sole survivor from a 1970s experiment in marketing, a step-up light twin is still in demand and still built by New Piper.

Pipers Arrow isn't the fastest, the roomiest or the most stylish single-engine retractable available on the used market. But-just as all cross-country airplanes are compromises-it has enough of those qualities to give it enduring popularity. And it might be the most economical, if you don't mind giving up some cruise speed to others in its class, like a Mooney or Bonanza. It also has the advantage of not being an orphan-the Arrow is still being made. Since its little more than a retractable Cherokee, the Arrow is a logical step-up airplane for pilots accustomed to Pipers fixed-gear four-seaters. Moving from one cockpit to the other, everything will be familiar, from gauge placement to systems to handling and procedures. Thats no accident, of course: Offering a full line of airplanes was the basic marketing model for all of the major manufacturers in the 1960s and 1970s. As they started out in two-seat trainers, pilots were encouraged to step up into similar four-place, fixed-gear models, then to retractables from the same blood line.

Piper’s PA-28R Arrow series has long proven its versatility. We’ve trained in Arrows, we’ve traveled in them and we’ve wrenched them, too. No, these...

Of all the changes general aviation has gone through in the past 20 years, the piston twin arguably has borne the brunt. Fuel prices, plus improved engine and systems reliability, have made piston twins less desirable than in their heyday of the 1960s and 70s. And for the same money as a new piston twin, pilots these days often can find a used single or twin turboprop with plenty of time left on its engines. Operating expenses are higher, but so are performance, reliability and comfort. But the piston twin does live on, at least at Piper and Hawker Beechcraft. The latter still offers the six-seat Model 58 Baron while Piper will be happy to sell you a roughly comparable Seneca V. Cessna, despite once selling a wide range of piston twins, left that market long ago and shows no signs of returning. Meanwhile, other piston twins are available new from Tecnam, Diamond and Vulcanair, to name three. But, if youre looking for a smaller, simpler twin, Piper also still makes the Seminole, sort of a double-breasted Arrow IV.

Shop the six-seat, retractable piston-single market and you'll find three basic choices: Beechs Model 36 Bonanza, Cessnas Model 210 Centurion and Pipers PA-32R series, which is the Lance and Saratoga. At first blush, the Bonanza arguably handles better than the other two while perhaps squeezing out a knot or two over the Centurion. The 210, on the other hand, generally has better short-field performance than the Bonanza and offers an improved hand-flown IFR platform.

For a history lesson on the eventual success of Piper's Warrior, look back to the alluring post-World War II boom, where major airplane manufacturers, to include Aeronca, Luscombe, ERCO, Piper and Cessna, among others, all eventually came to the conclusion that the future for mass-marketing airplanes was wrapped up in something that had four seats and on the order of 150 HP. Some manufacturers gave up after limited success, while Cessna and Piper went on to fight it out for decades, as Beech and Grumman-American tried to make inroads.

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The Piper Arrow is, in a way, like a Ford Taurus. Not the fastest, not the roomiest, not the most stylish... but it has enough of all of those qualities to give it enduring popularity. For those unable to afford a Mooney or Bonanza, it offers a less expensive, though still reasonably capable, cross-country machine. It also has the advantage of not being an orphan - the Arrow is still being made.

The Arrow, since its really just a retractable Cherokee (or Archer), is a logical step-up airplane for pilots who now fly fixed-gear Pipers. Everything will be familiar, from gauge placement to handling and procedures. And that, of course, was the basic marketing model for all of t...