Piper Aircraft

The Piper Cheyenne no longer graces the production lines of the New Piper, but that does not mean this particular series of planes did not make a splash in its day. This particular craft was noted for its turboprop design and corporate styling. For a time, it was one of Piper's most popular series. In fact, many of these craft still fly today and manage to retain a rather high resale value on the used market.

The roots of the Piper Cheyenne were laid in the 1960s when Piper began working on a turboprop version of the Pressurized Navajo. The prototype for the Piper Cheyenne was launched into the air in 1969, but was deemed unacceptable by the company. Piper went back to the drawing board and reworked the controls for increased loads because of the faster speed the plane was meant to fly.

Although it got off to a bumpy start, the Piper Cheyenne made it to market in 1974. The plane took off, with a variety of modifications made to the line through the years.

One of the first modifications to the Piper Cheyenne came in 1978 when Piper introduced the Cheyenne I. This plane was more affordable, but a bit slower than its predecessor. The original Cheyenne continued in production, but was known as the Cheyenne II at this time. Several different Piper Cheyenne models were eventually made, including the Cheyenne III and the Cheyenne IIXL. Each offered a little something different for the business and private owner crowd that admired these planes.

The Piper Cheyenne models could carry up to eight people, depending on the exact model in question. Many were designed for six, however. For a time, they were considered rather high on the Piper line for executive/corporate quality flying.

Although since replaced by newer models, such as the Meridian and Saratoga, the Piper Cheyenne still remains a fairly popular model on the used market. The planes still fetch a high price in the used arena, standing testament to this model's quality and durability.

Since the 1930s, the Piper Aircraft Company has dedicated itself to making solid planes at reasonable prices. Although the Piper Cheyenne line catered to the executive arena, the plane was and remains a reasonable priced vehicle for its class. Paving the way for other, more modernized Pipers to come along, the Piper Cheyenne served its purpose well and continues to do so for many owners.

Piper Aircraft |