Cessna 305 Bird Dog
2 models built 1950–1959 · 170 on the US register today
The L-19/O-1 Bird Dog, Cessna's tandem two-seat military observation and liaison aircraft built 1950-1959 on a 170-derived wing with a new narrow fuselage, greenhouse glazing and enormous flaps. It served in Korea and Vietnam as an artillery spotter and forward air control aircraft; surplus airframes have been on the civil register for decades.
The variants
Family fleet, active
170
FAA registry
NTSB events / 1,000, 10 yrs
100
17 events over 170 active aircraft, pooled across the family
Data as of: FAA registry Sep 28 · NTSB Oct 2 · scores Sep 30