The Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six is a series of single-engine, fixed

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for takeoff or landing. For aircraft it is generally needed for both. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, such as the Glenn L. Mart ...

light aircraft A light aircraft is an aircraft that has a maximum gross takeoff weight of or less.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 308. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. Light aircraft are used as utility aircraft co ...

manufactured in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

Piper Aircraft Piper Aircraft, Inc. is a manufacturer of general aviation aircraft, located at the Vero Beach Regional Airport in Vero Beach, Florida, United States and owned since 2009 by the Government of Brunei. Throughout much of the mid-to-late 20th centu ...

between 1965 and 2007.Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', page 63. Werner & Werner Corp, Santa Monica CA, 1977. Montgomery, MR & Gerald Foster: ''A Field Guide to Airplanes, Second Edition'', page 32. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992. The PA-32 is used around the world for private transportation, air taxi services, bush support, and

medevac Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...

flights.

Development

The PA-32 series was developed to meet a requirement for a larger aircraft than the four-seat

Piper PA-28 Cherokee The Piper PA-28 Cherokee is a family of two-seat or four-seat light aircraft built by Piper Aircraft and designed for flight training, air taxi and personal use.Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', pages 62–64. Werner & Werner Corp, ...

. The first prototype PA-32 made its initial flight on December 6 1963, with the type being publicly announced in October 1964, with

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

(FAA)

type certification A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applic ...

following on March 4, 1965. The first production aircraft was the PA32-260 Cherokee Six, a significantly modified six-seat (or seven-seat) development of the PA-28 Cherokee. The Cherokee Six and its successors feature a baggage compartment in the nose between the cockpit and the engine compartment and a large double door in the back for easy loading of passengers and cargo.

PA-32-300

On 27 May 1966, Piper obtained FAA type certification for a version, designated as the PA-32-300. It was offered by the company as a 1967 model.

PA-32R

The 1975 addition of retractable landing gear resulted in the first of the PA-32R series, the Piper Lance. This was the earliest aircraft in the

Piper Saratoga The Piper PA-32R is a six-seat, high-performance, single engined, all-metal, fixed-wing aircraft produced by Piper Aircraft of Vero Beach, Florida. The design began life as the Piper Lance, a retractable-gear version of the Piper Cherokee Six. La ...

family, Piper's luxury, high-performance single line. Piper's transition to tapered wings for the Cherokee series resulted in a new wing for the PA-32 series, as well. The tapered-wing version of the Cherokee Six was named the Saratoga and debuted in 1980.

Piper 6X

After the ''

General Aviation Revitalization Act The General Aviation Revitalization Act of 1994, also known by its initials GARA, is Public Law 103-298, an Act of Congress on Senate Bill S. 1458 (103rd Congress), amending the Federal Aviation Act of 1958. It was intended to counteract the effe ...

'' of 1994, production of the retractable-gear Saratoga resumed in 1995. A fixed-gear PA32 was reintroduced in 2003 as the Piper 6X and the turbocharged 6XT. Sales of the 6X and 6XT models did not meet expectations and production ceased in late 2007.

PA-34 prototype

Piper built a prototype PA32-260 with IO-360 engines mounted on the wings. The trimotor aircraft was the proof-of-concept aircraft for the twin-engined, retractable-gear version of the Cherokee Six, the PA-34 Seneca.Montgomery, MR & Gerald Foster: ''A Field Guide to Airplanes, Second Edition'', p.96. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992.

Variants

;PA-32-250 Cherokee Six :Prototype with 250hp

Lycoming O-540 The Lycoming O-540 is a family of air-cooled six-cylinder, horizontally opposed fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter engines of displacement, manufactured by Lycoming Engines. The engine is a six-cylinder version of the four-cylinder Lycoming O- ...

engine, two built ; :Production variant with a 260hp Lycoming O-540-E4B5 engine ;PA-32-260 Cherokee Six B :1969 model with increased cabin space ;PA-32-260 Cherokee Six C :1970 model with minor changes ;PA-32-260 Cherokee Six D :1971 model with minor changes ;PA-32-260 Cherokee Six E :1972 model with interior and instrument panel changes (note model letters not used after 1972) ;PA-32-300 Cherokee Six :Variant with a 300hp Lycoming IO-540-K1A5 engine, named the Piper Six 300 after 1979 ;PA-32-300 Cherokee Six B :1969 model with instrument panel changes, engine changed to IO-540-K1G5 ;PA-32-300 Cherokee Six C :1970 model ;PA-32-300 Cherokee Six D :1971 model ;PA-32-300 Cherokee Six E :1972 model (note model letters not used after 1972) ;PA-32-300LD :Experimental low-drag variant for increased fuel efficiency, one built ;PA-32S-300 Seaplane Version :Factory built on floats, only a small number were made. ; :Variant from 1980 with a 300hp Lycoming IO-540-K1G5 engine ;PA-32-301T Turbo Saratoga :Saratoga with a turbocharged Lycoming TIO-540-S1AD engine and revised cowling ;PA-32-3M :PA-32 prototype modified as a three-engined aircraft with two 115-hp

Lycoming O-235 The Lycoming O-235 is a family of four-cylinder, air-cooled, horizontally opposed piston aircraft engines that produce , derived from the earlier O-233 engine.Textron Lycoming: ''Operator's Manual, Textron Lycoming Aircraft Engines, Series O-23 ...

engines fitted to the wings, for development of the PA-34 Seneca ;Embraer EMB-720C Minuano :Brazilian license-built version of PA-32-300 Cherokee Six. ;Embraer EMB-720D Minuano :Brazilian license-built version of PA-32-301 Saratoga Fixed Gear version. Production by

Embraer Embraer S.A. () is a Brazilian multinational aerospace manufacturer that produces commercial, military, executive and agricultural aircraft, and provides aeronautical services. It was founded in 1969 in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, where ...

and its subsidiary

Indústria Aeronáutica Neiva Indústria Aeronáutica Neiva is a subsidiary of Embraer which produces airplanes and aircraft components. Its main product is the Embraer EMB 202 Ipanema, the most employed agricultural aircraft in Brazil and the first alcohol-powered airplan ...

. ;Embraer EMB-721C Sertanejo :Brazilian license-built version of PA-32R-301 Lance. ;Embraer EMB-721D Sertanejo :Brazilian license-built version of PA-32R-301 Saratoga Retractable Gear version. Production by Embraer and its subsidiary Neiva.

Specifications (1972 model PA-32-300)

References

External links

Piper Aircraft

PA-32 series at Airliners.net
{{Piper Low-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft 1960s United States civil utility aircraft PA-32 Aircraft first flown in 1963