Aircraft model
PIPER PA-20-115
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Pacer 115: the economy Pacer, with a 115 hp Lycoming O-235 in place of the 125 hp O-290 and a maximum weight of 1,750 lb rather than 1,800. It is a real certificated model on type certificate 1A4, not a conversion, and it was Piper's answer to buyers who wanted four seats for the price of a two-seater in 1950.
Ownership is steel tube and fabric ownership. The recover is the periodic bill that dwarfs everything else, corrosion in the tubing under the fabric is what ends these airframes, and the lift strut inspection requirement is a real one. Against that, the engines are among the cheapest four-cylinder Lycomings to overhaul and the parts trade for the type is unusually good, because Univair and others still make almost everything. On a 115 hp Pacer specifically, the arithmetic is tight: four seats and 1,750 lb gross means two adults, some fuel and nothing else, and the climb rate at weight on a warm day is modest. Most buyers treat it as a two-plus-baggage aeroplane and are happy with it on that basis.
Compare with…
Put PIPER PA-20-115 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-20-115
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming O-235-C1 |
| Horsepower | 115 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1950 |
| Production end | 1954 |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 101 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 460 nm |
| Service ceiling | 14,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 560 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 42 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,725 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,280 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 790 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 574 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,750 lb |
| Empty weight | 960 lb |
| Usable fuel | 36 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 6.4 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $40,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $100,000 |
| 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 | 4 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 1 |
| Median year built | 1950.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | — |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | — |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 1 |
| Transfers per 100 active | — |
| Airworthiness directives | 2 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | none |
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | —3 |
| Support | 0.4 of 104 |
| Liquidity | —5 |
- Accident record: class median 32.28 · 202 models in class.
- Severity: class median 12.5.
- Access: class median 775.
- Support: class median 147.5.
- Liquidity: class median 19.9.
- 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.