Aircraft model
CESSNA A150M
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The final Aerobat, on the 150M airframe with the taller swept fin and extended dorsal. It is the most refined version and also the heaviest, which matters on an aeroplane with only 100 hp and a 1,600 lb gross weight.
Useful load is around 470 lb, which for aerobatic work with an instructor and a student and a parachute each is genuinely tight — many operators fly them with reduced fuel for that reason. It remains the cheapest certified aerobatic aeroplane and is widely used for spin endorsements and first aerobatic courses. As with every Aerobat, the logbooks matter: aerobatic use accumulates airframe fatigue faster than touring flight, and a machine that has spent years in an aerobatic school is a different proposition from one flown gently by a private owner.
What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Continental O-200-A |
| Horsepower | 100 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1975 |
| Production end | 1977 |
| Endorsements required | — |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 100 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 330 nm |
| Service ceiling | 12,650 ft |
| Climb rate | 670 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 42 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,385 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,075 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 470 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 335 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,600 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,130 lb |
| Usable fuel | 22.5 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 5.6 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $42,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $95,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 1,800 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $24,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $34,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 155 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 80 |
| Median year built | 1975.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 1 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 12.5 per 1,000 active · base 80 active · thin base (low) |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 0 per 1,000 active · base 80 active · thin base (low) |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 20 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 25 per 100 active · base 80 active · thin base (low) |
| Airworthiness directives | 4 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | low |
Peer scores
A score runs from 0 to 10 within the model's peer class: a position, not a grade, and the six are never added together.
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | — · class median 25 · 181 models in class |
| Severity | — · class median 5 |
| Access | 4.1 of 10 · class median 987 |
| Support | 5.3 of 10 · class median 72 |
| Liquidity | 7.1 of 10 · class median 20.59 |