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Aircraft model

COMMANDER AIRCRAFT CO 114-B

Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.

The Commander 114B is the type as revived in the 1990s by Commander Aircraft Company, which restarted production after Rockwell left the market. It is the same wide-cabin four-seat retractable with 260 hp, updated with a better interior, improved systems and modern avionics of the period. The 114B of 1992 is itself the change from the Rockwell aircraft: a 28-volt electrical system, a cleaner cowl and other speed modifications, a three-blade propeller and a new interior. Within the run the aircraft built from 2000 to the 2002 shutdown were sold as the Commander 115, with a lowered instrument panel, better seats, an electrical upgrade and TKS de-icing as an option, while keeping the 114B designation on the certificate and the registry; the turbocharged 115TC is the separate 114TC. About 200 114Bs were built, so a 2000 or later aircraft is a late 115 in all but name and a 1992 to 1999 one is the earlier interior and panel.

It remains the roomiest aeroplane in its class and remains slower than a Bonanza or a Mooney on similar power, which is the enduring trade. What a 1990s aircraft adds over a 1970s one is a much lower-hour airframe, better corrosion protection and avionics that are closer to usable. Commander Aircraft built only a few hundred before ceasing production, so the fleet is small and support runs through specialists and an active owners' association rather than a manufacturer.

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What it is

Seats4
Landing geartricycle
Engines1
EngineLycoming IO-540-T4B5
Horsepower260 hp
Fuel100LL
Certification basisFAR23
Production start1992
Production end2002
Endorsements requiredcomplex;high-performance

Performance

Cruise speed155 KTAS
Range800 nm
Service ceiling16,500 ft
Climb rate1,000 ft/min
Stall speed (Vso)54 KCAS
Takeoff over 50 ft1,900 ft
Landing over 50 ft1,500 ft

Load and fuel

Seats4
Useful load1,200 lb
Full-fuel payload792 lb
Max takeoff weight3,250 lb
Empty weight2,050 lb
Usable fuel68 gal
Fuel burn at cruise14.6 gal/h

Cost of ownership

Price, low$180,000
Price, high$300,000
Prices as of2026
Engine TBO2,000 h
Overhaul cost, low$46,000
Overhaul cost, high$66,000

The fleet and its record

Registered, all time119
Active fleet70
Median year built1994.0
NTSB events, last 10 years1
Fatal events, last 10 years0
Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years14.29 · thin base (low)1
Personal-flying events per 1,000 active0 · thin base (low)2
Ownership transfers, last 24 months15
Transfers per 100 active21.43 · thin base (low)3
Airworthiness directives3
Directives, last 5 years0
Rate confidencelow
  1. Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 70 active.
  2. Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 70 active.
  3. Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 70 active.

Peer scores6

Peer classFixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats
Accident record—1
Severity—2
Access2.1 of 103
Support3.2 of 104
Liquidity6.5 of 105
  1. Accident record: class median 28.36 · 202 models in class.
  2. Severity: class median 11.65.
  3. Access: class median 767.75.
  4. Support: class median 141.5.
  5. Liquidity: class median 19.57.
  6. 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.