The Piper PA-44 Seminole is an American twin-engined

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 by Piper Aircraft. The PA-44 is a development of the

Piper 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, ...

single-engined aircraft and is primarily used for multi-engined flight training.Montgomery, MR & Gerald Foster: ''A Field Guide to Airplanes, Second Edition'', page 92. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992. The Seminole was built in 1979–1982, in 1989–1990, and has been in production since 1995.

Design and development

The first production Seminoles are equipped with two 180 hp (135 kW) Lycoming O-360-E1A6D engines. The right-hand engine is a Lycoming LO-360-E1A6D variant, which turns in the opposite direction to the left-hand engine. This feature eliminates the

critical engine The critical engine of a multi-engine fixed-wing aircraft is the engine that, in the event of failure, would most adversely affect the performance or handling abilities of an aircraft. On propeller aircraft, there is a difference in the remaining ...

and makes the aircraft more controllable in the event that an engine needs to be shut down or fails. The first prototype Seminole made its maiden flight in May 1976 and the type was publicly announced on February 21, 1978. The Seminole was first certified on March 10, 1978, and introduced as a 1979 model year in late 1978. Gross weight is 3800 lbs (1723 kg). Later production Seminoles were built with Lycoming O-360-A1H6 engines. The PA-44-180T Turbo Seminole version was certified on November 29, 1979. It features two turbocharged 180 hp (135 kW) Lycoming TO-360-E1A6D engines, which offer a significant improvement in performance at high

density altitude The density altitude is the altitude relative to standard atmospheric conditions at which the air density would be equal to the indicated air density at the place of observation. In other words, the density altitude is the air density given as a ...

. The Turbo Seminole had its takeoff gross weight raised to 3925 lb (1780 kg), while the landing weight remained at 3800 lbs (1723 kg). The PA-44 features a high

T-tail A T-tail is an empennage configuration in which the tailplane is mounted to the top of the fin. The arrangement looks like the capital letter T, hence the name. The T-tail differs from the standard configuration in which the tailplane ...

similar to the T-tailed Arrow IV. The Seminole is visually similar to the

Beechcraft Duchess The Beechcraft Model 76 Duchess is an American twin-engined monoplane built by Beechcraft intended partly as a low cost introduction to twin-engine aircraft. Development Developed as Model PD289 (Preliminary Design 289), the prototype was u ...

. Production of both versions of the Seminole was stopped in 1982, after 361 Seminoles and 87 Turbo Seminoles had been built. Production of the normally aspirated PA-44-180 restarted in 1988. Changes were limited to modifications to the aircraft's electrical systems and instrumentation. Production was stopped again in 1990 after 29 more aircraft had been delivered owing to Piper's financial problems. Production restarted again in 1995.

Variants

; :Normally aspirated version powered by two Lycoming O-360-E1A6D or two O-360-A1H6 engines. ;PA-44-180T Turbo Seminole :Turbocharged version powered by two Lycoming TO-360-E1A6D engines. ;PA-44 Seminole DX :A proposed diesel-powered variant powered by two Continental Motors CD-170 engines.

Operators

Civil

The PA-44 is popular with air charter companies and flight schools, and is operated by private individuals and companies.

Military

; * Royal Jordanian Air Force ; *

Peruvian Air Force The Peruvian Air Force ( es, link=no, Fuerza Aérea del Perú, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguardin ...

Specifications (PA-44-180 Seminole)

References

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External links

Piper Aircraft PA-44 Home page
{{Piper

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

1970s United States civil trainer aircraft Low-wing aircraft T-tail aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1978 Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft