Piper PA-24 Comanche
The Piper PA-24 Comanche was Piper's first retractable-gear, high-performance single-engine aircraft, aimed at pilots who wanted more speed and range than the fixed-gear Cherokee family could offer. Its clean aerodynamics and retractable gear gave it a genuine speed advantage over many contemporaries in its class. It helped establish Piper's reputation in the high-performance personal aircraft market, a segment it continued to serve with later designs. A dedicated enthusiast community keeps a meaningful number of Comanches flying today, valued for their combination of speed and load-carrying capability.
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Did you know?
Piper's first retractable-gear single, the Comanche traded the fixed-gear Cherokee's simplicity for a genuine speed advantage over its rivals.
Specifications
| Length | 7.6 m (25 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 11 m (36 ft) |
| Height | 2.3 m (8 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 5 |
| Persons on board | 4 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 1.4 t |
| Range | 1,225 NM (2,269 km) |
| Maximum speed | 169 kt (313 km/h) |
| Stall speed | 56 kt (104 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 19,500 ft (5,944 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 14,000 ft (4,267 m) |
| Rate of climb | 1,350 ft/min (6.9 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 229 m (751 ft) |
| Landing distance | 410 m (1,345 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 370 l |
| Engines | Lycoming IO-540 |
| Units built | 4,857 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
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