Piper Aircraft

Throughout its lengthy history, Piper Aircraft has rolled out some planes that would become long-lived and legendary. It has also introduced some models that would survive in production for only a very short while. The Piper Colt is one such short-lived plane.

The Piper Colt was added to the line in 1960 and was removed in 1964. Roughly 2,000 planes were built during this time. Despite its rather short run, the Piper Colt did make an impression on the aviation world. In fact, it is possible to still find them in very good working condition on the used market.

Inspired by the Tri-Pacer, the Piper Colt PA-22 108 was a two-seat model. It offered a fairly small engine, with only 108 hp. It also bore a number of other scaled down features. These included a lower weight capacity, no rear door, a lessened fuel capacity over the Tri-Pacer and even a removal of rear cabin windows.

The Piper Colt was seen almost as a placeholder for other creations coming up in the Piper line. The two-seat Cherokee is what replaced it. But, by this time, Piper had also jumped heavily into the production of its executive line, as well.

Although it did not survive in production for long, the Piper Colt does hold a few distinctions of its own. This model and its inspirational piece, the Tri-Pacer, are the only two high-wing, tricycle undercarriage crafts built by Piper. They were also the last to feature the metal tubing and fabric covering construction from the past.

From the original Piper Cub to the PiperJet of today, this avionics company has undergone a lot of changes through the years. Founded with a dedication to build quality crafts for training, work, personal and executive use with budgets in mind, Piper Aircraft is considered a legend in the industry. While it may not have been Piper's premier plane or its longest running model, the Piper Colt represents somewhat an end of an era. With faster, better twin-engine and higher horse powered all-metal designs coming into production, the Colt and Tri-Pacer together ushered out the earlier designs, while serving their owners well.

While their production has long since ceased, both the Piper Colt and the Tri-Pacer are assured their places in this company's history, which is still being written today. The New Piper offers more modernized, faster designs, but the Colt and Tri-Pacer both were important parts of the march forward.

Piper Aircraft |