Aircraft model
CESSNA 172P
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The 1981-1986 Skyhawk and the last of the old production run before Cessna stopped building piston singles in 1986. The P fixed the N's engine problem by fitting the proven O-320-D2J, and it raised gross weight to 2,400 lb, which gives it the best load-carrying of any pre-1996 172. Same job as ever: training, club flying, two-up travel.
This is widely considered the sweet spot of the old Skyhawks — the reliable engine, the higher gross weight, the optional 50-gallon long-range tanks, and none of the price premium of the modern fuel-injected ones. Prices have risen accordingly and a clean P with decent avionics is no longer cheap. The reservations are structural rather than model-specific: it is a forty-year-old aeroplane, the flap system and control cables need real inspection, and many have very high airframe hours from flight-school use. It is one of the easiest aircraft in the world to get insured on and to find an instructor for.
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Put CESSNA 172P side by side with up to two other models.
- CESSNA 172P
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming O-320-D2J |
| Horsepower | 160 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1981 |
| Production end | 1986 |
| Endorsements required | — |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 120 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 440 nm |
| Service ceiling | 13,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 700 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 41 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,690 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,280 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 986 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 746 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 2,400 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,414 lb |
| Usable fuel | 40 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 9 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $110,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $320,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 2,000 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $28,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $40,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 2,252 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 1,110 |
| Median year built | 1981.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 84 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 7 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 75.681 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 26.132 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 208 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 18.743 |
| Airworthiness directives | 22 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 1,110 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 1,110 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 1,110 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 6.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 6.2 of 102 |
| Access | 8.7 of 103 |
| Support | 9.1 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 3.5 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 34.3 out of 506 |
- 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.