Cessna 208B (registered as CESSNA)
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Grand Caravan is a single-engine turboprop freighter and commuter aircraft: a big unpressurised box on fixed gear with a PT6 on the front, a large cargo door, and the ability to lift over 3,000 lb out of a short unpaved strip. FedEx feeder operators, island airlines, skydiving centres, missionary aviation and remote charter companies fly them in every climate, and the type is one of the most widely used utility aircraft in the world. The designation covers two quite different aeroplanes. Through 2012 it is the original Grand Caravan with the 675 shp PT6A-114A, with conventional instruments until the Garmin G1000 became standard in 2008. From 2013 it is the Grand Caravan EX with the 867 shp PT6A-140, which climbs about a third faster and cruises some 11 knots quicker, at the cost of a heavier empty weight and less range. A 2010 aircraft is therefore a G1000 Caravan with the smaller engine; a 2014 is an EX.
It is bought for load and reliability, not for speed or comfort: 175 knots, unpressurised so limited to the low and mid teens in practice, and loud. The economics work because a PT6 will run 3,600 hours between overhauls and starts every time, and because the airframe tolerates rough strips and heavy use. Icing is the type's known weak area — the Caravan accumulated a poor record in icing conditions and is now subject to specific operating limitations and required equipment; anyone flying one in winter must understand those rules. A 1996 aircraft will have older weights and a lower gross than current production. No type rating is required below 12,500 lb, but every operator and insurer requires formal training.
Variants of the Cessna 208 Caravan
- 208 · 1984 · 118 active
- 208A · 1984 · 1 active
- 208B · 1986 · 645 active · this page
- 208B · 1986 · 211 active
Also consider
- Kodiak 100Score 29/50 · 10 seats · 174 kt
- Pilatus PC-12/45Score 19.3/50 · 9 seats · 270 kt
- de Havilland DHC 2 MK IIIPartial 4.2/30 · 10 seats · 140 kt
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Put Cessna 208B (registered as CESSNA) side by side with up to three other models.
- Cessna 208B (registered as CESSNA)
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What it is
| Seats | 14 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A |
| Horsepower | 675 hp |
| Fuel | JetA |
| Certification basis | FAR23 |
| Production start | 1986 |
| Production end | current |
| Endorsements required | high-performance |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 175 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 940 nm |
| Service ceiling | 25,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,234 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 61 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 2,160 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,871 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 14 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 4,070 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 1,846 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 8,750 lb |
| Empty weight | 4,680 lb |
| Usable fuel | 332 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 46 gal/h |
Estimated cost to own
An estimate, not a quote. Change the inputs to match how you would fly it. Defaults are for a single-engine turboprop.
| Fuel (burn × price) | hourly | $352/h | $35,236/yr |
| Engine reserve (overhaul ÷ TBO) | hourly | $12,083/yr | |
| Maintenance reserve | hourly | not counted | |
| Insurance | fixed | $15,000/yr | |
| Annual inspection | fixed | not counted | |
| Hangar | fixed | not counted |
Not in the totals: Maintenance reserve, Annual inspection, Hangar. We have no reliable default for these lines; enter your figure to include them.
How these estimates are built. Fuel = this model's typical burn x the national average price from AirNav's Fuel Price Report (100LL $7.41, Jet A $7.66 per gallon, 5 Oct 2026; your airport may differ by $2 or more). Engine reserve = typical overhaul cost / TBO for this engine. The remaining lines are class-level defaults, not quotes for this aircraft: annual inspection is the base inspection fee (findings are counted in the per-hour maintenance line); insurance assumes an instrument-rated owner with time in type and a $1M liability limit - less experienced pilots commonly pay 1.5-2x; hangar and tie-down are national mid-tier figures, with rural and metro options; the rental rate is a 2026 flight-school rate for a comparable aircraft, including fuel. Twin and turboprop maintenance defaults are estimates, not published figures. Sources: AirNav, BWI Aviation Insurance (2019-2026), Flying (May 2026), Savvy Aviation, American Flight Schools, published airport rate sheets. Every default is editable - change any number to match your situation. Depreciation, taxes, financing and major upgrades are not included. Depreciation is not included. An estimate, not a quote.
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $1,300,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $3,250,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 3,600 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $350,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $520,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 1,678 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 645 |
| Median year built | 1996.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 55 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 11 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 85.271 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 1.552 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 84 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 13.023 |
| Airworthiness directives | 26 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 645 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 645 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 645 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, turbo-prop, 1 engine, 7+ seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 7.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 5.6 of 102 |
| Access | 4.4 of 103 |
| Support | 10 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 3.3 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 31.1 out of 506 |
These record scores treat Cessna 208B (registered as CESSNA) as one design with the same aircraft registered under other names: it includes 211 aircraft registered under TEXTRON AVIATION INC. Prices are not combined.
- Accident record: class median 3.7 · 10 models in class.
- Severity: class median 29.71.
- Access: class median 3,269.25.
- Support: class median 94.5.
- Liquidity: class median 21.99.
- 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. When accident record and severity cannot be scored because the model has too few records, the other three give a partial score out of 30, labelled as such; it is never set against a full score.
Data as of: FAA registry Sep 28 · NTSB Oct 2 · ADs Oct 6 · scores Sep 30