Aircraft model
BELLANCA 14-19
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Bellanca 14-19 Cruisemaster: the 1949 four-seat retractable with a 190 hp Franklin, a wooden wing, a fabric-covered steel tube fuselage and the triple tail that makes a Bellanca recognisable from a mile away. It cruises at about 157 knots on 190 horsepower, which is a figure most modern four-seaters cannot match on 230, and it does it because the airframe is unusually clean.
A wooden-wing Bellanca is bought for the speed and owned with the wing in mind. The spar and glue joints are the whole of the pre-purchase inspection and there is an inspection history worth reading up on before committing. The Franklin engine is a specialist item with a thin parts supply. Against that, the aeroplane is a genuine 155-knot four-seater that can be bought for the price of a tired trainer, and the type community is knowledgeable and generous.
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Put BELLANCA 14-19 side by side with up to two other models.
- BELLANCA 14-19
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Franklin 6A4-190-B8F |
| Horsepower | 190 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1949 |
| Production end | 1956 |
| Endorsements required | complex;tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 157 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 435 nm |
| Service ceiling | 21,500 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,250 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 38 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,270 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,025 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 1,025 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 785 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 2,600 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,575 lb |
| Usable fuel | 40 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 10.6 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $55,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $85,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 1,200 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | — |
| Overhaul cost, high | — |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 84 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 30 |
| Median year built | 1950.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 0 · thin base (low)1 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 0 · thin base (low)2 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 1 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 3.33 · thin base (low)3 |
| Airworthiness directives | 4 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | low |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 30 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 30 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 30 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | —3 |
| Support | 1.4 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 0 of 105 |
These record scores treat BELLANCA 14-19 as one design with the same aircraft registered under other names: it includes the record of aircraft once registered under BELLANCA INC; includes the record of aircraft once registered under BELLANCA/BIEMOND; includes the record of aircraft once registered under DOWNER. Prices are not combined.
- Accident record: class median 32.28 · 202 models in class.
- Severity: class median 12.5.
- Access: class median 775.
- Support: class median 147.5.
- Liquidity: class median 19.9.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories.