Aircraft model
PIPER PA-16
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Clipper, built only in 1949: a short-winged, four-seat taildragger that Piper developed from the Vagabond as a cheap family aeroplane. It is small, light and surprisingly efficient, and it was the direct ancestor of the Pacer and Tri-Pacer that followed. Production lasted barely a year, partly because Piper was sued over the Clipper name, so they are uncommon.
Four seats is optimistic. With 108 hp and a 1,650 lb gross weight it will carry two adults and two children, or two adults and fuel, and not much more; anyone treating it as a genuine four-seater will be over gross. Climb on a warm day is modest. It is fabric over steel tube, so the covering's age is the dominant cost question and corrosion in the tube structure is the dominant risk. As a taildragger with a short wing it lands steeply with power off and requires a tailwheel endorsement and real currency. For a light, cheap, characterful aeroplane it is good value; as family transport it is not.
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Put PIPER PA-16 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-16
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming O-235-C1 |
| Horsepower | 108 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1949 |
| Production end | 1949 |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 96 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 480 nm |
| Service ceiling | 12,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 600 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 42 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 800 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 584 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,650 lb |
| Empty weight | 850 lb |
| Usable fuel | 36 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 6 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $38,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $70,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 2,400 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $24,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $34,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 663 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 275 |
| Median year built | 1949.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 7 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 25.451 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 21.822 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 56 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 20.363 |
| Airworthiness directives | 2 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 275 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 275 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 275 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | 1.7 of 103 |
| Support | 6.4 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 5.8 of 105 |
- Accident record: class median 28.36 · 202 models in class.
- Severity: class median 11.65.
- Access: class median 767.75.
- Support: class median 141.5.
- Liquidity: class median 19.57.
- 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.