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Used Aircraft Guide

Used Aircraft Guide: Piper Arrow

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.

Aviation Consumer Staff
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Pip

ers 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

Piper Arrow

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.

While the market has changed, the Arrow soldiers on. Its a relatively ubiquitous airplane, available in many flavors ranging from the original, relatively sedate 180-HP version with its short, stubby wings to a fire-breathing, T-tailed turbocharged version perhaps best known for heat-management and runway-hogging issues: Even Piper has a bad day. A few quirks aside, though, some version or vintage of the Piper Arrow may be the right airplane at the right time for a prospective owner.

History

The original PA-28 owes its existence to John Thorpe, who designed an all-metal homebuilt that, after some modifications, became the first Cherokee. Introduced in 1962 as the Cherokee 150 and 160, the PA-28 gave Piper a badly needed shot in the arm in the low-end market. Cessna had a runaway success on its hands with the 172, and Pipers competition-the Tri-Pacer – was downright dowdy by comparison.

The original Cherokee did well, and was soon joined by the 180 and 235, giving Piper a strong lineup of fixed-gear singles meeting many missions. Since all Cherokees share the same basic airframe, the company was also able to realize some manufacturing economies.

By the mid-1960s, Piper began considering the PA-28 as a candidate to compete in the light four-place retractable market, then dominated by Mooney with Beechs least expensive retractable-the Debonair-costing a third again as much as a Mooney. Cessna had no comparable airplane at all, and Pipers Comanche would go out of production in the mid-1970s.

Piper folded the gear on its Cherokee 180 and in 1967 unveiled the first Arrow. It was every bit a Cherokee, from the fat, constant-chord Hershey Bar wing to the stabilator. The base price was $16,900, some $1350 less than the Mooney M20C Mark 21 (according to the Aircraft Bluebook Price Digest). However, the average

Aviation Consumer Staff